For inauguration forget driving, shuttles made available

Don't drive. Pack light. Be ready to wait in line. The advice keeps pouring in for Inauguration Day.

Metro will have all eight car trains that day. But many people from the far suburbs and out of the area will be looking for other ways to get into town. Shuttle buses are most likely to be used, and three major bridges have been set aside for them or pedestrians.

"The staging areas are down in key locations near the mall so we can get them on and off quickly. That's the idea we're working on," says Arlington Councilmember Chris Zimmerman.

Zimmerman says just forget about driving into the city, and when you get downtown expect a different set up than some past big event.

There will be no security checkpoints on most of The Mall because they could become choke points. Instead there will be 1300 national guardsman, more than 12,000 uniformed police officers, mounted patrols, cameras, and undercover police, according to the Washington Post.

(Copyright 2008 by WTOP. All rights reserved.)