The police and the Church have jointly announced the route along which crowds can see the Pope as he travels through London on his popemobile.
The route will be the one chance for Londoners to see the Pope without having bought tickets for any of the papal events.
The first trip in the popemobile will be in the evening of Friday September 17, and will take the Pope from his meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury at Lambeth Palace to an audience with politicians and leaders of British society at Westminster Hall. He will go from Lambeth Palace to Westminster Hall via Lambeth Bridge and along Millbank, on the north side of the Thames.
Then, in the early evening on Saturday September 18, the popemobile will take the Pope to the prayer vigil at Hyde Park, travelling along the edge of St James’s Park on Horse Guards Road, and then the Mall, before going past Buckingham Palace into Green Park. He will be driven up Constitution Hill, through the park, and on past Hyde Park Corner.
The Metropolitan Police said that while “security issues will be paramount”, the popemobile’s routes “are designed with the aim of affording the public the best possible opportunity of seeing Pope Benedict”. The police also advised those wishing to see the Pope to “plan their trips will in advance and head for the central London popemobile routes to avoid disappointment”.
After the Hyde Park Vigil, the Pope then departs for Birmingham on Sunday morning, for the beatification of Cardinal Newman at Cofton Park.
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