Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Creates New Security Department
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey plans to consolidate its security operations, handing responsibility to one designated officer. The move should strengthen overall security and accountability.
The new chief security officer will oversee security for the World Trade Center site and all of the Port Authority's airports, ports, bridges and tunnels and commuter PATH system.
The individual, to be chosen after a national search, also will have operational control of the authority's police department.
The decision to create the post comes after a review conducted by a firm co-founded by Michael Chertoff, former secretary of the U.S. Department of Security.
"This review was not conceived because of any crisis that emerged or a specific threat," Chertoff told a news conference. Instead, it was done "to take a calm look at what has worked and what has not."