Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis said that surveillance drones could play a role in providing security at next year's Boston Marathon.

“Drones are a great idea," Davis told the Boston Herald. "I don’t know that would be the first place I’d invest money, but certainly to cover an event like this, and have an eye in the sky that would be much cheaper to run than a helicopter is a really good idea.”

As the Washington Times reports, Massachusetts is one of 30 states with pending legislation to restrict or ban the use of drones by law enforcement officials.

Davis also said he'd like to see lower-mounted security cameras in areas of high pedestrian traffic to better capture suspects' faces. Davis proposed that the city and businesses could partner to fund the cameras.