TIMES SQUARE, Manhattan (PIX11) -- At 11 a.m., streets will fully shut down in and around Times Square in preparation for the annual New Year’s Eve celebration.
It’s an even months in the making with additional NYPD officers added around the clock. The barricades are up and some garbage trucks are already blocking off the streets in preparation for the more than 1 million spectators expected to descend on Times Square.
The frozen zone for Times Square has expanded larger than last year, spanning from 39th to 57th Street and Fifth Avenue to Ninth Avenues.
For commuters, the N, Q, and R trains will skip 49th Street in both directions while uptown 1 trains skip 50th Street. All other stations in the area will be open and operational.
Visitors planning to attend the New Year’s Eve celebration will have to go through one of six checkpoints starting at 3 p.m. Pedestrians can enter from 49th, 52nd, and 56th Streets from both Sixth and Eighth Avenues.
Getting through the checkpoint means you can't have backpacks, large bags, coolers, chairs, alcohol, or umbrellas. This despite the rain in the forecast for New Year’s Eve.
For commuters, the N, Q, and R trains will skip 49th Street in both directions while uptown 1 trains skip 50th Street. All other stations in the area will be open and operational.
Mailboxes, manholes, vending machines, and litter baskets in the frozen zone will be sealed or removed, according to Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch. Additional drones will also fly overhead to look for any suspicious activity.
“We're also looking for any type of anomalies, maybe somebody may be having like a medical emergency….people that maybe distress,” said Kaz Daughtry, Deputy Commissioner of Operations.
New Year's Eve in Times Square will be the first assignment for 600 graduating NYPD recruits. According to authorities, there are no credible threats but there is a heightened response because of what's going on around the world, including recent events at a Christmas market in Germany.
English (US) ·