New Yorkers Brace For Traffic Headaches As World Leaders Gather For UN General Assembly
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- More than 140 government leaders, including President Barack Obama, are gathering in New York this week for the annual United Nations General Assembly.
The fight against the so-called Islamic State militant group is expected to take center stage, and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he hopes the session will produce a consensus to act against the group.
This year, Obama will visit New York for three days.
World Leaders Gather For United Nations General Assembly
The president is first slated to attend the Clinton Global Initiative gathering Tuesday on the West Side. He will chair a U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday and call on fellow world leaders to back a resolution to stem the flow of foreign fighters joining terrorist organizations like the Islamic State group.
World Leaders Gather For United Nations General Assembly
Obama will also speak at a meeting where individual nations and the U.N. are expected to announce new commitments to fight the Ebola outbreak ahead of his departure Thursday.
WEB EXTRA: Guide To Getting Around NYC During The UN General Assembly
The neighborhood around the U.N. has been taken over by barricades and checkpoints, and New Yorkers can also expect major traffic headaches on the East Side throughout the week.
"The residents of this area find it to be a pain in the neck," one man told 1010 WINS' John Montone. "It usually alters our lives and inconveniences us, but we accept it because we live in the great city and in a great area."
"Trains are packed with people because you can't wait for a bus," one man told WCBS 880's Paul Murnane. "Traffic is insane, and it's every year. Next year, I'm taking vacation."
"You have to give yourself enough time to sort of get to other avenues or other streets to get cabs because it's much harder to get them in the area just because of all the action going on," another man said.
"This becomes a gridlock mess," another man said. "You can't even walk on First Avenue because of all the police presence. Stay out of town."
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