N.Y. Avoids ‘Gorbylock’
New Yorkers cleared the streets for Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev today, preventing the massive traffic jam city officials had feared.
Motorists apparently left their cars at home by the thousands in favor of mass transit, unlocking the predicted “Gorby gridlock,” or “Gorbylock”--a massive traffic jam--before it could happen.
“New Yorkers seem to be taking the advice of our department and staying away,” said Gregory Perrin, a spokesman for the city’s Department of Transportation.
City officials had drummed out warnings before Gorbachev’s arrival, saying the closing of major thoroughfares to give his motorcade quick and secure passage could create an intersection-by-intersection jam-up that would cripple movement in Manhattan.
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