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They sure aren't in NYC.

MTA didn't tell us of dirty bomb scare: officers

The threat was unconfirmed, but specific: Al Qaeda terrorists driving box trucks laden with nuclear-laced bombs were heading to New York City.

The NYPD went on alert, but MTA officers assigned to guard key bridges and tunnels weren't told what to look for, officers told the Daily News.

Instead of information, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority passed out new, pager-sized radiation detectors with a memo on how to use them.

"We didn't know what we were looking for, or how to use the radiation detectors," said an MTA Bridges and Tunnels officer stationed outside the Midtown Tunnel. "We find out the next day by reading the newspapers that it was a dirty bomb scare, truck and bombs."

The Aug. 10 scare proved false, but MTA Bridges and Tunnels cops said the lack of information and haphazard distribution of new technology are typical of an organization more interested in collecting tolls and moving traffic than in safety.

"They'll give us two weeks of training for how to collect tolls, making sure we charge a three-axle truck more than a two-axle, but no field training on what a bomb might look like, how to stop cars or use this radiation detector," said an officer who works at the Verrazano Bridge.

An MTA spokesman confirmed radiation detectors were handed out the night of the dirty bomb scare, but called them replacement pagers that did not require additional training.

"All proper procedures were followed and communicated, and personnel and equipment were deployed as appropriate during the August alert," said MTA spokesman Jeremy Soffin. "We will not comment on the details of our security measures."

The MTA has nearly 1,000 armed peace officers and supervisors working at the Midtown and Battery tunnels and its seven major bridges: the Whitestone, Verrazano, Triborough, Marine Parkway, Henry Hudson, Throgs Neck and Cross Bay. They are a separate entity from the MTA police.

Bridges and Tunnels officers said dozens of pager-sized radiation detectors were given out Aug. 10 during the dirty bomb scare, but only a couple of dozen newly hired officers had any formal training in using them.

"A lot of the guys aren't sure how to turn them off, so they take the batteries out and put them back in," said one disgusted officer. Others said they are unsure if the stationary radiation detectors at the entrances to most crossings even work.

"The authority is about money. So they don't want us holding up traffic and keeping hundreds of commuters waiting while we stop and check a van that has an expired license," said an officer at the Verrazano.

Officers said they faced a similar information blackout in July when a Con Ed steampipe burst in midtown. The 911 calls came about 5:57 p.m., and within an hour the NYPD put out notice it wasn't a terror attack. "We knew none of this," said an MTA Bridges and Tunnels officer. "One of our lieutenants briefly closed the [Midtown] Tunnel for about four minutes, and then was given the order to reopen it."

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime_file/2007/09/10/2007-09-10_mta_didnt_tell_us_of_dirty_bomb_scare_of-4.html