Rail Security
In former counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke's chilling account in the Atlantic of what the next 10 years in the war on terrorism could look like, he laid out the scenario for what he called "Subway Day" and "Railroad Day."
It's the Spring of 2006, and on a Monday, bombs go off on subways in Atlanta, Boston, Baltimore, and Philly, and then on a Thursday IED's are used against interstate railcars in five states. Hundreds are killed, the transportation network is frozen, the economy staggers, and officials scurry to put in security systems.
The scariest part of Clarke's piece are the footnotes, where he provides the evidence for the horrible scenarios that he lays out. In his notes, Clarke writes that: "the Bush administration has been slow to request dedicated funding for rail security" and "the DHS still lacks a plan to secure public-transportation networks."
A quick Google search finds nothing current, so let me ask the collective: has this changed at all? Do we have a plan? Do we have adequate funding?
Update [2005-7-7 16:33:30 by kennybaer]: A friend in the vast homeland security-industrial complex pointed me in the right direction. Relatively small amounts in the Department of Homeland Security have been moved around to work on rail and mass transit security, but it pales in comparison to what has been spent on securing the airlines (TSA has been frustratingly obsessed with airline security -- to the chagrin of Democrats and Republicans alike). The public transit lobby estimates that $6 billion is needed to address security needs, and the amounts allocated are still being measured in the millions. If it sounds like fighting the last war, it should.
Amtrak commuter Senator Joe Biden has been the point person on this in the Senate. Read his comments upon the release of the 9/11 Commission Report or Biden's op-ed in the Washington Times from February of this year. For even more detail, check out this report put out in the last Congress by the Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee. It's chilling, and never has been more relevant.
It's the Spring of 2006, and on a Monday, bombs go off on subways in Atlanta, Boston, Baltimore, and Philly, and then on a Thursday IED's are used against interstate railcars in five states. Hundreds are killed, the transportation network is frozen, the economy staggers, and officials scurry to put in security systems.
The scariest part of Clarke's piece are the footnotes, where he provides the evidence for the horrible scenarios that he lays out. In his notes, Clarke writes that: "the Bush administration has been slow to request dedicated funding for rail security" and "the DHS still lacks a plan to secure public-transportation networks."
A quick Google search finds nothing current, so let me ask the collective: has this changed at all? Do we have a plan? Do we have adequate funding?
Update [2005-7-7 16:33:30 by kennybaer]: A friend in the vast homeland security-industrial complex pointed me in the right direction. Relatively small amounts in the Department of Homeland Security have been moved around to work on rail and mass transit security, but it pales in comparison to what has been spent on securing the airlines (TSA has been frustratingly obsessed with airline security -- to the chagrin of Democrats and Republicans alike). The public transit lobby estimates that $6 billion is needed to address security needs, and the amounts allocated are still being measured in the millions. If it sounds like fighting the last war, it should.
Amtrak commuter Senator Joe Biden has been the point person on this in the Senate. Read his comments upon the release of the 9/11 Commission Report or Biden's op-ed in the Washington Times from February of this year. For even more detail, check out this report put out in the last Congress by the Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee. It's chilling, and never has been more relevant.
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Yep. Too much of our security apparatus is dedicated to never having to look like the Russian Ambassador at the end of The Hunt For Red October: "Comrade... you've lost ANOTHER submarine?"
Anything else you can just shrug and say "how could we see it coming? Even if you should have.
July 8, 2005 1:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
"the DHS still lacks a plan to secure public-transportation networks."
Maybe that is because it is absolutely impossible to 'secure' the rail system? The whole reason why an agressive stance on the War on Terrorism is vital is because a defensive stance is impossible.
July 13, 2005 11:23 PM | Reply | Permalink