Ring of steel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The ring of steel is the popular name for the security and surveillance cordon surrounding the City of London, installed to deter the IRA and other threats.[1][2] The term was borrowed from an earlier stage of the Troubles when the centre of Belfast was fortified against attacks, the perimeter of which was known as the ring of steel.[3]
Roads entering the City are narrowed and have small chicanes to force drivers to slow down and be recorded by CCTV cameras. These roads typically have a concrete median with a sentry box where police can stand guard and monitor traffic.[2] City planners call these types of precautions "fortress urbanism".[4]
Some roads have been closed to traffic entirely.[5] Despite the term "ring of steel", the roadblocks and chicanes are actually created with concrete blocks,[4] sometimes plastic coated, that are wedged together.
The measures were introduced following a massive IRA bombing campaign in the City in the early 1990s such as the 1992 Baltic Exchange bombing and the 1993 Bishopsgate bombing.[2] At this time the sentry posts were guarded by armed police almost continuously. Initially the ring of steel consisted of plastic cones and on duty policemen which the locals described as the "ring of plastic".[6] It served the purpose of providing a visible sign to the public that the City authorities were taking the threats of more attacks by the IRA seriously.[6] This was replaced by more permanent structures consisting of concrete barriers, checkpoints and thousands of video cameras.[4] Following IRA ceasefires the police presence was curtailed.
Following the September 11th terrorist attacks, and a reported increased terrorist threat to the United Kingdom, security has been stepped up again somewhat, with occasional spot checks on vehicles entering the cordon, although not to previous levels.[2]
In December 2003, the Ring of Steel was widened to include more businesses in the City.[2] This was as a direct result of a police report that categorized a terrorist attack on the City as "inevitable".
Traffic entering the city is also monitored and recorded at the boundary of the London congestion charging zone, which covers a wider area.
In July 2007, New York City announced plans to install an extensive web of cameras and roadblocks designed to detect, track and deter terrorists called Lower Manhattan Security Initiative, which is similar to the "ring of steel".[7]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ City of London Police. "3.2.4 The automated number plate recognition (ANPR) system and the Corporation of London’s traffic and environment zone culminate in what is generally referred to and known as the ‘ring of steel’.
- ^ a b c d e BBC Staff (2003-12-08)
- ^ Coaffee (2004), p. 201 (pdf p. 2) first paragraph.
- ^ a b c Lipton (2005-07-24)
- ^ Coaffee, Jon (2003) p.176
- ^ a b Coaffee (2004), p.204 (pdf p. 5) second paragraph
- ^ Buckley, (2007-07-09).
[edit] References
- Buckley, Cara (2007-07-09). "New York Plans Surveillance Veil for Downtown". New York Times: p. 1. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/09/nyregion/09ring.html?ex=1343275200&en=219d15391d1af88f&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink. Retrieved on 2008-04-10.
- BBC Staff (2003-12-08). "'Ring of steel' widened". BBC News Online. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/3330771.stm. Retrieved on 2008-04-10
- City of London Police, Counter-Terrorism, January 2005
- Coaffee, Jon (2003), Terrorism, Risk, and the City: The Making of a Contemporary Urban, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., ISBN 0754635554, 9780754635550.
- Coaffee, Jon (2004). Rings of Steel,Rings of Concrete and Rings of Confidence:Designing out Terrorism in Central London pre and post September 11th, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Vol 28 Number 1 2004.
- Lipton, Eric (2005-07-24). [ To Fight Terror, New York Tries London's 'Ring of Steel'] 24 July , 2005.
