Security Tight for Times Square Event
HARRIS: So, hundreds of thousands of people are expected to ring in the new year in New York, Times Square to be exact. And of course police will be out in force to protect the partygoers. Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff joining us now live from New York. And Allan, it is one of the toughest jobs, protecting the signature New Year's Eve event, really for the world.</s>ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: No doubt. The police work on this all year long. And you could think of the NYPD as the bouncers for the world's biggest New Year's Eve party, but the fact is the police here in New York actually do far more to ensure that Times Square is the most secure public place on the planet for tonight's big celebration.</s>CHERNOFF (voice-over): From the perspective of the New York Police Department, every reveler in Times Square is a potential terror threat. That's why the NYPD will essentially lock down the Square.</s>RAY KELLY, NYPD COMMISSIONER: We want people to have a happy experience, but we're also concerned about a terrorist event. We have to do that after 9/11.</s>CHERNOFF: Security sweeps begin well in advance of New Year's Eve. Detectives gain intelligence from local hotel and restaurant personnel on the lookout for suspicious activity. Police search garages and subway tunnels for bombs, remove trash cans, seal mailboxes and manhole covers. A search on Wednesday of a suspicious van led to a partial evacuation of Times Square, though the van turned out to pose no threat. Beginning at 3:00 on New Year's Eve, traffic is banned, and all streets leading into Times Square are blocked off. Police sample the air for biological agents. They wear radiation detectors, and dogs sniff for bombs. As the crowd gathers, thousands of police, uniformed and undercover, converge on Times Square. From the ground and air, the NYPD watches Times Square like a chessboard. (on camera): Times Square is essentially now the safest place on New Year's Eve.</s>KELLY: That's right. Yes. Absolutely, it's the very, very safe place.</s>CHERNOFF (voice-over): It wasn't always this way. Twenty years ago, before terrorism was such a concern, this center of the world on New Year's Eve was a dangerous place. (on camera): Times Square used to be a madhouse.</s>KELLY: True. True. It was somewhat rowdy, disorderly. You would see a lot of drinking that started early on. So, by the time midnight rolled around, a lot of people were feeling no pain.</s>CHERNOFF: People were rolling around.</s>KELLY: People were rolling around. Right. And doing some strange things.</s>CHERNOFF (voice-over): The NYPD began placing the crowd into pens, fenced in by interlocking barriers in the late '90s, which brought order to what had been the world's biggest mosh pit. Today, alcohol and backpacks are banned, and the crowd is generally orderly and well-behaved. Still, Commissioner Kelly is ready to toast the New Year only after the party is over.</s>KELLY: When the ball drops, it's a certain feeling of relief, and we've made it through another year.</s>CHERNOFF (on camera): A sigh of relief.</s>KELLY: Right.</s>CHERNOFF: It's a lot of stress on the police department.</s>KELLY: There is some stress, no question about it. But that's -- you know, that's all part of the business.</s>CHERNOFF: Even with the threat of terrorism, the fact is Times Square is much safer, much more secure than it used to be. And the party here has gone from a terribly rowdy event to a family celebration -- Tony.</s>HARRIS: Yes, it really has. And Allan, maybe we can help the authorities a little bit here. What time should people actually start to show up? And how many are expected?</s>CHERNOFF: All right. Well, let's, first of all, take the time. Given the weather, we've got snow right now. It could rain. That means maybe we'll have a few less, but if you really want to be here in Times Square seeing the ball, really, you need to be here by 3:00, 4:00 at the latest to be certain that you'll be actually in the square. Afterwards, they start moving people up. Now, Tony, let's talk about the numbers. OK? The Times Square alliance always says at least a million people. That's the number thrown around. It sounds great. It may have been true in the past. There's no way it's true anymore. Let's break this down here. Inside of the pen that we referred to, there are 2,500 people approximately in each pen. Four pens to each block. That gives us 10,000. Each block, you've got Broadway and you've got 7th Avenue, 20,000 per block. Let's expand Times Square, go all the way from the park, Central Park, 59th Street down to 39th Street, south of One Times Square. That gives us 400,000 in those pens. Maybe add another 100,000 of police, media, performers, et cetera, and then you've got some people on the side streets, not that many because they can't see the ball. Maybe 600,000.</s>HARRIS: That's a big number.</s>CHERNOFF: Nonetheless, it's a big, big party -- Tony.</s>HARRIS: It really is. Good stuff, Allan. Appreciate it. Boy, let's just for a second here, where's that shot of Times Square once again? That's a great shot. Look at that. Roger (ph), I don't know, whenever we can, let's sort of loop this in here whenever we're talking about New Year's. That's a great picture. All right. We've got to go. We have to get to the top stories here in a second. They're back for more. We're talking about GMAC Financial Services, in line for a third round of taxpayer-funded bailout money. So how much this time?