Thursday, July 13, 2006

NY MTA Increases Transit Security Patrols after Bombing

After the deadly commuter train bombings in Mumbai yesterday, New York City has increased transit security once again. Police officers who would have clocked out at 3PM or 4PM were kept on through the evening rush hour, and the random subway bag checks were increased. Can you believe it's been almost a year since bag checks were instituted? Police Commissioner Ray Kelly explained, "We are acting on an abundance of caution. There are no indications of any specific threats to our rail system. But it's always a possibility that [an attack] is part of a worldwide operation."
The MTA won't talk about their security improvements, for fear of giving "the terrorists a road map," but only a third of the planned 2000 video cameras have been installed in the subways. And the Port Authority unveiled a new system to screen concealed weapons at the Exchange Place station in Jersey City yesterday.