lucky wilbury
05-20-2004, 11:55 PM
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/conventions/articles/2004/05/20/convention_planners_release_detailed_traffic_secur ity_plan/
Convention planners release detailed traffic, security plan
By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press Writer | May 20, 2004
BOSTON -- Planners of the Democratic National Convention confirmed the worst fears of Boston commuters on Thursday, releasing a security plan that includes closing several miles of busy Interstate 93, along with bridges, tunnels and some secondary highways during the afternoon rush hour.
"Our best guess is that we are going to severely impact traffic," said State Police Maj. Michael Mucci, who unveiled the latest draft of the security plan at a breakfast meeting of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.
Mucci said he could not estimate how long commuters could be stuck in traffic that week, but he half-jokingly told the crowd of more than 400 business and political leaders that if the traffic got too bad, commuters should "turn around and go home."
The plan calls for I-93 to close from around 4 p.m. until after midnight on the four days of the convention -- July 26-29. The interstate passes within yards of the FleetCenter, where the convention will be held.
The highway will be closed from exit 32 in Medford, just north of Boston, to Exit 20, which connects to the Massachusetts Turnpike just south of downtown.
The Sumner Tunnel and Tobin Bridge will also be closed. And eastbound Storrow Drive will be closed from Western Avenue to North Station during the convention.
Some secondary roads will also have traffic restrictions or lane closures, including portions of Route 1 north of Boston, where travel will be reduced to one lane.
Mucci said the car pool lanes on I-93 will be used as dedicated lanes for emergency vehicles and designated MBTA buses only.
"Those decisions are not made lightly and they are not made in a vacuum," Secret Service security planner Scott Sheafe said.
Planners said they considered a multitude of alternative traffic plans and tried to come up with a plan that balanced the need for heightened security with the level of disruption caused by the closures. The DNC will be the first national political convention since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Many of the security measures come at the insistence of the Secret Service, which has designated the DNC a "national special security event." All vehicles in the downtown area, for example, will be subject to random searches.
A preliminary version of the plan, announced in March, called for the highway closure, as well as the weeklong shutdown of busy North Station, located directly beneath the FleetCenter.
It met with widespread complaints from commuters, especially those who live north of Boston and rely on the highway and commuter rail station for access to the city. Many said they would take vacation that week or telecommute from home, rather than brave what is sure to be a traffic nightmare.
About 24,000 rail commuters use North Station daily, while up to 200,000 motorists use the new I-93 tunnel, the centerpiece of the massive Big Dig highway project.
North Station will close for the entire week, and the four commuter rail lines from the north will stop outside the city and riders will be bused into Boston. Subways will not stop at North Station during the convention.
Inner harbor commuter ferries from Lovejoy Wharf in downtown Boston will also be suspended for the entire week.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino called on companies to encourage carpooling and give employees options such as working from home and staggering work hours. "I'm asking you to give your employees the flexibility they need to make this work," he told the chamber.
Walter Prince, a partner in a law firm located less than 100 yards from the FleetCenter, said the firm's 85 employees will work at home as much as possible, but that doesn't help lawyers who have appearances scheduled in downtown courthouses that week.
"We're going to have to really assess whether we can really even operate that week," Prince said.
------
On the Net: http://boston04.com
Convention planners release detailed traffic, security plan
By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press Writer | May 20, 2004
BOSTON -- Planners of the Democratic National Convention confirmed the worst fears of Boston commuters on Thursday, releasing a security plan that includes closing several miles of busy Interstate 93, along with bridges, tunnels and some secondary highways during the afternoon rush hour.
"Our best guess is that we are going to severely impact traffic," said State Police Maj. Michael Mucci, who unveiled the latest draft of the security plan at a breakfast meeting of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.
Mucci said he could not estimate how long commuters could be stuck in traffic that week, but he half-jokingly told the crowd of more than 400 business and political leaders that if the traffic got too bad, commuters should "turn around and go home."
The plan calls for I-93 to close from around 4 p.m. until after midnight on the four days of the convention -- July 26-29. The interstate passes within yards of the FleetCenter, where the convention will be held.
The highway will be closed from exit 32 in Medford, just north of Boston, to Exit 20, which connects to the Massachusetts Turnpike just south of downtown.
The Sumner Tunnel and Tobin Bridge will also be closed. And eastbound Storrow Drive will be closed from Western Avenue to North Station during the convention.
Some secondary roads will also have traffic restrictions or lane closures, including portions of Route 1 north of Boston, where travel will be reduced to one lane.
Mucci said the car pool lanes on I-93 will be used as dedicated lanes for emergency vehicles and designated MBTA buses only.
"Those decisions are not made lightly and they are not made in a vacuum," Secret Service security planner Scott Sheafe said.
Planners said they considered a multitude of alternative traffic plans and tried to come up with a plan that balanced the need for heightened security with the level of disruption caused by the closures. The DNC will be the first national political convention since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Many of the security measures come at the insistence of the Secret Service, which has designated the DNC a "national special security event." All vehicles in the downtown area, for example, will be subject to random searches.
A preliminary version of the plan, announced in March, called for the highway closure, as well as the weeklong shutdown of busy North Station, located directly beneath the FleetCenter.
It met with widespread complaints from commuters, especially those who live north of Boston and rely on the highway and commuter rail station for access to the city. Many said they would take vacation that week or telecommute from home, rather than brave what is sure to be a traffic nightmare.
About 24,000 rail commuters use North Station daily, while up to 200,000 motorists use the new I-93 tunnel, the centerpiece of the massive Big Dig highway project.
North Station will close for the entire week, and the four commuter rail lines from the north will stop outside the city and riders will be bused into Boston. Subways will not stop at North Station during the convention.
Inner harbor commuter ferries from Lovejoy Wharf in downtown Boston will also be suspended for the entire week.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino called on companies to encourage carpooling and give employees options such as working from home and staggering work hours. "I'm asking you to give your employees the flexibility they need to make this work," he told the chamber.
Walter Prince, a partner in a law firm located less than 100 yards from the FleetCenter, said the firm's 85 employees will work at home as much as possible, but that doesn't help lawyers who have appearances scheduled in downtown courthouses that week.
"We're going to have to really assess whether we can really even operate that week," Prince said.
------
On the Net: http://boston04.com