Denver traffic locks Dem convention
Rickshaws become preferred transportation
More Articles:
Most Viewed:
Fall Out Boy still standing(5438 views)Super Bowl ad surprise(1781 views)Valentine's Day(1768 views)Super Bowl breaks ratings record(1715 views)'Dear John' tackles 'Avatar' at box office(1341 views)Michael Chiklis is 'Family'(1098 views) |
Traffic hassles at the Democratic National Convention have the Mile-High City moving at what seems to about a mile an hour.
The rickshaw is fast becoming the preferred means of transit — all the more ironic given the flawless flow of the Olympics in Beijing. Reportedly spotted in rickshaws have been such media figures as Jon Meacham of Newsweek and Mark Halperin of Time. Political consultant Chad Griffin said that, short of an actual bike, it is the only means of getting anywhere close to the Pepsi Center.
It isn’t so much getting through security, as the TSA is keeping people flowing through barriers at a pretty fast clip; it’s just getting there that’s the problem.
On the first day of the convention, it took many attendees an hour or more to trek from their hotels in downtown Denver to the Pepsi Center, about a mile away.
Taxis are not as plentiful as in New York or even Los Angeles, but that doesn’t seem to matter. They can only drop off patrons to within about five blocks of the arena.
Most of the convention hotels — such as the Sheraton, where the New York and California delegations are staying, and the Westin, where Barack Obama’s fund-raisers are camped out — are clustered in downtown Denver.
Light rail and shuttle buses, meanwhile, are overcrowded and, for many attendees, too much of a hassle.
Undaunted is Heather Thomas Brittenham, who said she has taken to riding a bike — available for free — around the city.
"I have had no problems," she said.
The traffic and security checkpoints have hurt attendance at the Starz Green Room, where a mini film festival and lineup of politically oriented panels are planned all week.
Attendees were apparently put off by the fear of security hassles. Although the Starz event is outside the main security buffer, it is within a "soft security zone" inaccessible by car. It was, however, a serene environment, and the likes of Tom Hayden and Morgan Spurlock hung out in the green room. Crowds picked up considerably for some of the panels Tuesday.
Even outside the Pepsi Center environs, traveling by car poses another problem: where to park. Throughout downtown Denver, Homeland Security officials have been combing through cars seeking to park in ramps, in what amounts to 10-minute searches for explosives.
"Out of this world," comedian Harry Shearer said of the security measures. "It really calls into question the rationale for these events" given the fears or threats of a major disturbance, he said.
One irony is that Obama won’t even be speaking at the Pepsi Center; he’ll be at Invesco Field.
Nevertheless, the Courage Campaign’s Rick Jacobs said he actually found navigation easier than in Boston in 2004. "It is really well organized, well staffed," he said.
And to be fair, the major solace is that once through security, and inside the perimeter of the Pepsi Center, things are downright jubilant. A squad of Denver residents greets each attendee with claps and cheers. At one entrance, they pass by the CNN Cafe, a restaurant space rented out by the cabler for the week, where media types can mix and mingle.
In the corridors of the Pepsi Center is an enormous display of media might, with nary a wall existing without some kind of outlet’s banner. Just about every available space is used up. Los Angeles public radio station KPCC, for instance, is parked just on the side of an escalator.
A buzz starts filling the corridors as some politician or media figure strolls through, often with a small mob of cameras. Al Franken had one on Monday, as did Gayle King, who is doing her "Oprah & Friends" radio show from the convention site. And one man wandered through dressed up as a pirate, along with two scantily clad women, pitching himself as a candidate for president. He was promoting Crown Royal, Johnny Walker Red and Captain Morgan, among other spirits.
So how on earth did he get through security, much less receive credentials? It may have to do with the fact that the Distilled Spirits Council also sponsored a big convention after-party.
