Crowds of 1 million or more to test DC
Photo 
People crowd the National Mall in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington Monday, Jan. 19, 2009, in anticipation of the swearing-in of President-elect Barack Obama Tuesday.
WASHINGTON — Subway trains are packed. Traffic is bumper-to-bumper. It seems that every dimension of President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration is taking on historic proportions as visitors stream into the nation's capital.
Thousands of charter buses from across the country were planning to arrive in the District of Columbia, packing parking lots and even streets that closed Monday night to accommodate the surge of overnight visitors and day-trippers.
"We're prepared; we're braced," said Steven Taubenkibel, spokesman for the District's Metro mass-transit system.
Already, visitors were experiencing a few headaches. Some people grumbled as they walked the streets Sunday afternoon, searching for alternatives after they couldn't enter a subway station near George Washington University. The station, which had become exit-only, was unloading a flood of people attending a big concert at the Lincoln Memorial.
In Chinatown, there were long waits at restaurants. People packed the neighborhood's sidewalks, dodging vendors selling hand warmers, Obama air fresheners and other inaugural products. National Guardsmen patrolled on foot, with police cruisers parked nearby.
Some were unnerved by the unprecedented security surrounding Obama's inauguration. But Karen Anderson, a pastor from St. Louis, said it was reassuring. She remembered being in Washington during the 1968 riots that followed the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. But now, she said, there is a palpable vibrancy.
"I don't feel afraid here; I feel free," said Anderson, 53.
City and local planners have consistently warned visitors that they could expect extensive transportation delays.
On the closing list Tuesday are all inbound bridges connecting the District of Columbia and Virginia, though authorized vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists are allowed. A sizable chunk of downtown Washington will be shut down, and other sections will not permit parking. The two subway stations near the National Mall will be closed for much of the day.
For those hoping to taxi in or out of town, be warned. Some taxi drivers have decided not to work the full day — because of the closings and because they also wanted a chance to watch the inauguration.
Taxi driver Ephrem Zewdie, a native of Ethiopia, planned to work only Tuesday morning. Then, he would drive home to suburban Maryland, ride a subway train into the city and join the crowds on the Mall.
"I was following the election from the beginning," Zewdie said. "Even though I'm not a citizen, I'm very excited."
D.C. police have projected inaugural crowds between 1 million and 2 million. Planners say attendance could easily top the 1.2 million people who were at Lyndon B. Johnson's 1965 inauguration, the largest crowd the National Park Service has on record.
Such crowds means visitors must be extra diligent in keeping track of their belongings — and each other — in near-freezing temperatures.
At Union Station on Monday, social studies teacher Ashley Weaver kept an eye on her 24 students, who sat on the floor eating lunch. They arrived Saturday from Eagle Valley High School in Gypsum, Colo.
"I took students four years ago to the inauguration, and it was nothing like this," said Weaver, 27. "There's a huge mass of people."
Jan 20, 2009 at 8:59 a.m.
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Man! It was unreal. President Obama was greeted at the doors of the White House by George and Laura and they walked inside. (Oh, and the doors were closed behind them too) Now I can see why so many braved the cold to be in DC for this.... wow.
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