Road closures for Twin Cities Marathon weekend
FILE PHOTO: Runners head down Douglas Avenue. in the Kenwood neighborhood in Minneapolis during the Twin Cities Marathon. (Photo By DAVID BREWSTER/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The 40th anniversary of the Twin Cities Marathon will be raced on Sunday, Oct. 3, with more than 9,000 runners expected to run the 26.2-mile course from Minneapolis to St. Paul.
But it's not just the marathon. The weekend includes a full list of events, from the TC 10 Mile race, which has attracted nearly 11,000 runners this year, on Sunday. On Saturday, there's the TC 10K, the TC 5K and family events. This year's event returns to full capacity after the cancellation of in-person events in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and running with half-capacity fields in 2021 for safety.
The marathon course starts near U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis and follows streets and parkways through the Twin Cities, finishing at the State Capitol in St. Paul, with more than 300,000 spectators lining the route.
The Twin Cities Marathon route. (Twin Cities Marathon )
The races will result in roads around the marathon route being closed this weekend.
Here's a list of road closures to watch out for:
- St. Paul: John Ireland Blvd between 12th Street and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. was closed on Thursday at 9 a.m.
- St. Paul: Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Between University Avenue and Cedar Street will close Friday at 9 a.m.
- St. Paul: John Ireland Blvd. and Kellogg Blvd. will be closed on Saturday from 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
- St. Paul: John Ireland Blvd. and Summit Avenue (to Pascal Street) will be closed on Saturday from 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
- St. Paul: 12th Street from Wabasha to John Ireland Blvd. will be closed Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon and on Sunday from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Minneapolis: From 5th Avenue to 11th Avenue and from 7th Street to 3rd Street will be closed on Sunday at 4 a.m. for start line setup and will reopen at approximately 9 a.m.
- Minneapolis: Traffic turning onto the course on Sunday will be shut down at 6:15 a.m. for the 10 Mile, and 7:30 a.m. for the Marathon. Cross-traffic will be allowed to flow until the wheelchair athletes begin to approach.
- St. Paul: Traffic turning onto the course on Sunday will be shut down at 6:40 a.m. with intermittent traffic allowed to cross, at times, as gaps of runners on the race course allows.
Course crossings on Sunday:
- Miles 0-1 - Shut down at approximately 7:30 a.m. Reopened approximately: 9 a.m. Use side streets to cross course using freeways I-94 or 35W. Head toward Lake Street and obey police to cross course intermittently at Lake Street.
- Miles 3-8 - Shut down at approximately 7:30 a.m. Reopened approximately: 10:20 a.m. Head south and obey police to cross course intermittently at 50th Street. Head toward Nicollet Avenue and cross over the course at Nicollet Avenue.
- Miles 8-12 - Shut down at approximately 7:30 a.m. Reopened approximately: 11:20 a.m. East of West River Parkway: Obey course marshals to cross via 54th/ Diamond Lake Road. South of course: Obey course marshals to cross at 54th Street. North of course: Go South to 50th Street, East to Nicollet Avenue and cross over the course at Nicollet. Nicollet and 35W are North/South Crossings
- Miles 12-15 - Shut down at approximately 7:30 a.m. Reopened at approximately noon. North of course: Obey course marshals to cross at 46th or 42nd. South of course: Obey course marshals to cross at 56th Street.
- Miles 15-21 - Shut down at approximately 6:40 a.m. Reopened at approximately noon. Take nearest through street to freeways. Lake Street crosses the course without delays.
- Miles 21-26 - Shut down at approximately 6:40 a.m. Reopened at approximately 2:30 p.m. Take Ayd Mill or Grand Avenue into downtown Saint Paul to go around the State Capitol area. Ford Parkway crosses the course without delays. I-35E through Downtown St. Paul is an alternate route around the course.