Secret federal plan to protect transportation to be shared (not)

[deminks]

http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/state/hc-21182221.apds.m0243.bc-ct--transep21,0,1617653.story?coll=hc-headlines-local-wire

WASHINGTON -- A secret government plan to protect the nation's transportation systems from terrorist attacks will be shared with the people who run the systems, the Bush administration said Wednesday.

The plan was ordered by Congress because of concern that people who ride buses, trains and subways were taking a back seat to airline passengers when it came to security.

Congress wanted to receive the plan by April 1. The Transportation Security Administration submitted it Sept. 9 in classified form.

In a Sept. 15 letter to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, Collins and Lieberman said the people most affected by the plan ought to be able to read it.

"Key partners in transportation security, namely state, local and tribal governments and system owners and operators, are unable to access the document outlining their responsibilities and roles," they wrote.