Bourbon Street should be closed to traffic, security report recommends

Yahoo

09-04-2025

A security review commissioned in the wake of the deadly New Year's Day terror attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans recommends closing off a majority of the historic corridor to traffic and turning it into a permanent pedestrian zone.
The report from former New York City Police Chief Bill Bratton and his global consulting firm Teneo, obtained by CBS affiliate WWL-TV, recommends making approximately eight blocks along Bourbon Street a pedestrian zone, from Canal to Dumaine Street.
"Teneo Risk remains firm that restructuring Bourbon Street as a permanent pedestrian plaza is the safest and most secure way to mitigate against a future vehicle ramming attack on Bourbon Street and the immediate cross street corners feeding into Bourbon Street," said the report.
The recommendation is likely to face pushback as New Orleans business owners and residents opposed a similar idea last month, according to WWL-TV.
Teneo's security report is only a recommendation and city officials will make the final decision on future safety precautions.
"Ultimately, it is up to the city and the community to determine its risk tolerance for a solution and configuration that deviates from our recommendation," the report states.
It also recommends deploying individual police officers along more blocks of parade routes, increasing the use of barricades, drone surveillance and video surveillance, as well as removing all trash containers from the parade route to prevent potential placement of bombs.
The report was commissioned after the deadly New Year's Day terror attack on Bourbon Street when a man intentionally drove a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers.
Fourteen people were killed before the attacker died in a shootout with police. Dozens of others were injured in the attack.
Weapons and two potential improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, were found in the vehicle, authorities said. FBI bomb technicians also found two functional IEDs in coolers in the area. The suspect was seen placing the devices in surveillance video footage, FBI Deputy Assistant Director Christopher Raia said at the time. Both devices were rendered safe, and two other items were determined to not be IEDs, he said.
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