NYC unveils its traffic and security plans for convention

NEW YORK -- Bomb dogs will screen subway trains for explosives. High-tech cameras will do the same with cars. And a small army of uniformed and plainclothes officers will patrol partially or fully closed streets around Madison Square Garden.

Authorities say they believe those measures should secure the safety of President Bush and the tens of thousands of other attendees at the Republican National Convention -- yet not paralyze midtown Manhattan in gridlock.

Yesterday Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly outlined a plan they said would minimize commuter headaches, while countering the potential threat of terror attacks at the convention, set for Aug. 30 to Sept. 2.

''The disruption will be a little bit annoying, but minimal," Bloomberg said on his weekly radio show.

The transportation plan calls for one lane of avenues directly outside Madison Square Garden to remain open to motorists, except during the approximately 13 hours the convention will be in session. It also imposes parking restrictions and reroutes bus service. Streets bordering the convention to the north and south will be closed for several blocks.

A restricted area around the arena will be controlled by checkpoints, where police will demand identification from anyone seeking entry. Cars entering the area, including those carrying delegates and dignitaries, will be screened for explosives and other contraband by devices that provide real-time video images of their undercarriages.

In addition, there will be a show of force from the 36,500-officer New York City Police Department, the nation's largest. Some 6,000 to 10,000 officers have been assigned to patrol the streets and subways around the convention, including many who will have received training in how to respond to chemical, biological, or radiological attacks.

Officials have said Penn Station, located directly below the arena, will remain open during the convention.

The transportation hub serves Amtrak, the Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit, and the subway system. Riders could face delays, but no shutdowns, officials said.

The Lincoln Tunnel, just to the west of the convention site, and the city's other tunnels and bridges will be heavily guarded but open to usual traffic, authorities said.

The traffic plan announced yesterday also seeks to accommodate protesters by setting aside demonstration space at the southwest corner of the convention site, Bloomberg said.