Rio and Niterói Finalize New Year’s Eve Plans With 29,000 Agents, Facial Recognition and Tight Access Rules

Overview

• The integrated state operation will deploy more than 28,700 personnel, with about 300 police vehicles carrying facial‑recognition and license‑plate readers for real‑time identification.
• In Copacabana, 3,500 police, 182 vehicles and 17 checkpoints with metal detectors and facial‑recognition cameras will be backed by observation towers, drones, an aeromobile unit and crowd‑control teams, plus mobile patrols inspired by Salvador’s carnival.
• MetrôRio will require a prepaid digital Réveillon passport for boarding from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Dec. 31, issuing return bracelets at the turn, as road closures and bus hubs funnel arrivals and departures through controlled corridors.
• The Copacabana program features a 12‑minute fireworks display launched from 19 barges, a 1,200‑drone show and performances by Gilberto Gil with Ney Matogrosso, Belo with Alcione, João Gomes with Iza and DJ Alok.
• Across the bay, Niterói plans shows by Nando Reis, Ludmilla and Viradouro in Icaraí, expects roughly 400,000 people, and will enforce traffic closures and a security detail of 477 military police and 413 municipal agents supported by drones and 15 observation points.