Austin Police say they will step up security this weekend as the city gets ready to host a major international sporting event.
Moto GP comes to the Circuit of the Americas for three days, and organizers say they expect tens of thousands of people to show up. Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo says the explosions at the Boston Marathon will lead to more awareness this weekend as the motorcycle racing fans roll in.
“We have increased our presence for the events this weekend," Acevedo said. "We’re going to be on heightened alert throughout the weekend and into next week until we get a better understanding of what the threat picture is.”
Circuit of the Americas says it already has stringent security measures in place and will not be ratcheting them up further.
Those security measures require that everyone pass through a security checkpoint prior to entering the race track. All guests are subject to search by security personnel.
