Thursday, September 24 – Wednesday, September 30
ALTERNATE SIDE PARKING RULES ARE SUSPENDED THURSDAY, FRIDAY, MONDAY, AND TUESDAY FOR EID AL-ADHA AND SUCCOTH
Holy Pope-lock! Pope Francis’ first visit to the U.S. means traffic jams of biblical proportions around Manhattan. The pope arrives Thursday evening, but Friday is the bigger day for road closures and motorcades in Lower Manhattan – Don’t even THINK about driving. He leaves on Saturday through – you guessed it – Lower Manhattan.
On Thursday, the Pope’s impact will largely be limited to the Wall St. heliport and F.D.R. Drive. Expect closures around South St. when he arrives at about 4 p.m. The F.D.R. will be closed from the Battery to 63rd St. before and during his motorcade.
Thursday is also when the Giants play Washington at 8:25 p.m. The papal motorcade will be shutting down much of Midtown on Thursday so I’m expecting a lot of extra traffic at the Holland Tunnel.
On Friday, at around 11:30 a.m., Pope Francis will motorcade down from the United Nations to the 9/11 Memorial for a multi-religious service. That means the F.D.R. Drive will see massive slowdowns as he makes his way south. Liberty and Cedar Sts. from Trinity Place to Greenwich St., and the Northbound road on West St. from Battery Place to Murray St. will be closed 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. There will be periodic closures on southbound road on West St. from Chambers to Albany Sts. during the same time. I’m expecting Broadway and Church St. to come to standstills.
On Friday his Holiness leaves N.Y.C. from the Wall Street Heliport at around 8:30 a.m. Shutdowns of the F.D.R. and South St. are expected.
This is the week to follow me on Twitter for the most up-to-date news as the Pope motorcades around the city.
The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Run & Festival closes a swath of Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn starting 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday. Expect closures here: Battery Park Underpass in both directions, West St. between Battery Pl. and Warren St., West Thames St. between West St. and Battery Park Esplanade, South End Ave. between West Thames and Liberty Sts., Liberty St. between West St. and Battery Park Esplanade, Murray St. between North End Ave. and West St., Warren and Vesey Sts. between West St. and River Terrace, North End Ave. between Warren and Vesey Sts.
The festival portion of the Tunnel to Towers Run will close Vesey St. between West St. and North End Ave. and North End Ave. to Murray St. 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Stone Street Oyster Festival will close Stone St. between Hanover Sq. and Coenties Alley, Hanover Sq. between William and Pearl Sts., and Mill Ln. between South William and Stone Sts. 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday.
The Stone Street Pedestrian Mall will close Stone St. between Hanover Sq. and Broad St., and Mill Ln. between Stone and South William Sts., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. each day this week.
Email your traffic, transit and parking questions to transitsam@downtownexpress.com. Follow me on Twitter and check GridlockSam.com for the latest traffic news.
