BOSTON — The Boston City Council passed a hearing order to discuss enhanced safety measures for crowded events on Wednesday.
Councilor Erin Murphy, who filed the order, hopes a meeting will happen sometime next week to unite public safety officials, transportation experts, event organizers, & other community members.
The goal is to gather more ideas to help block streets after a man in a pickup truck intentionally rammed into a crowd celebrating New Year’s in New Orleans, killing 14.
City leaders are leaning on the Boston Regional Intelligence Center, a police data hub, for a comprehensive approach in addressing the concerns.
One strategy being looked at includes using more Department of Public Works vehicles to secure streets during events.
“We do have to use resources, but I think visitors deserve the safety and peace of mind knowing we have extra security,” said Murphy.
Murphy said a consistent approach in blocking major roads and surrounding side streets should be taken across the board.
She believes it should apply not only to the largest events but also parades, Open Streets activities, and festivals that attract a high concentration of people.
“One thing I’m hearing from first responders across the city. There are times when they do block streets when there’s events in their districts, but it’s not that it always happens or it’s a consistent rule,” added Murphy.
Mayor Wu has said she’s confident in the city’s public safety planning for large events.
Officials in the city of Salem also met this week to talk about how they can do a better job at protecting crowds.
Their discussion included a plan to install more protective barriers to help secure pedestrian areas.
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