Bomb Shields For The George Washington Bridge

George Washington Bridge - Workers are encasing the sections of the suspension bridge's cables with cylindrical shields, high above the Hudson River, from a potential terrorist blast.

The shields, which resemble columns and are painted gray to blend in with the rest of the structure, are the first such bulwarks to appear on a New York-area bridge.

More than 300,000 cars and trucks cross the George Washington Bridge every day, making the link between upper Manhattan and Fort Lee, N.J., the most heavily traveled in the world.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority plans to do a similar cable-protection project on the Verazzano Bridge. The city Transportation Department has retained the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help buttress its East River spans: the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg and Queensboro bridges. City officials have not released details.