HOUSTON – Part of the heavy security in place for Barbara Bush’s viewing Friday will require mourners to park about three miles away from St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, where Bush will lay in repose.
Those who wish to attend will have to park at the Second Baptist Church campus at Woodway and Memorial Drive. Mourners will have to go through a security screening there, and then board METRO buses to go to St. Martins.
The chapel will open at noon and remain open until midnight to receive mourners.
Event planners estimate they’ll be able to move about 2,000 people an hour from Second Baptist, to the chapel and back. METRO will provide 20 buses for shuttle service.
A section of Woodway Drive, in front of the church, between Sage and Chimney Rock Roads will be closed Friday to all traffic except residents. Long lines and traffic snarls are predicted.
"Will patience be the number one theme of the day? Yes. Its going to take you a little bit to get screened. It’s going to take you a little bit to get on the bus, and it’s going to take you a little bit at St. Martins to actually work your way to pay your respects," said METRO Chief Operating Officer Andrew Skabrowski.
The Second Baptist campus on Woodway Drive is not located on a major freeway, so heavy traffic congestion is expected.
Organizers urge anyone planning to come Friday to give themselves plenty of extra time.