Photo by LaTur
Between cherry blossoms and emancipation, D.C. has a lot to celebrate this weekend. And with massive parades and parties come obligatory road closures.
Much of downtown will be closed on Saturday to accommodate both the Cherry Blossom Parade and the Emancipation Day Parade. And the “Cherry Blast” will close a couple blocks of K Street NW until early Sunday morning.
From 10 a.m. until noon, folks celebrating the cherry blossoms will proceed down Constitution Avenue from 7th Street to 20th Street NW. The earliest closure for this event will take place from 3:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. on 7th Street between Constitution Ave NW and Independence Ave SW. And the following closures will be in effect from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.
- 9th Street between Pennsylvania Ave. NW and Constitution Ave. NW
- 10th Street between Pennsylvania Ave. NW and Constitution Ave. W
- 12th Street between Pennsylvania Ave. NW and Independence Ave SW
- Access to 12th Street Tunnel from I395 ramp SW
- 14th Street between Pennsylvania Ave. NW to Independence Ave. SW
- 14th Street Bridge SW (inbound) all traffic diverted East onto I395 freeway
- 15th Street between “E” Street to Constitution Ave. NW
- 17th Street between New York Ave NW to Independence Ave. SW
- 19th Street between “E” Street to Constitution Ave. NW
- Virginia Ave between 20th Street to Constitution Ave. NW
The Emancipation Day parade kicks off at 1 p.m. at One Judiciary Square (441 4th Street NW). Its being followed by a concert in Freedom Plaza featuring Rare Essence, Black Alley, and more. There will also be a truck touch, what Mayor Muriel Bowser has deemed a favorite, where municipal vehicles like dump trucks and snow plows will be parked around the plaza so kids can touch them.
Fireworks will follow because “it wouldn’t be Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia without fireworks,” Bowser said earlier this week.
Emancipation Day comes with the following street closures for Saturday:
From 7:30 a.m. to 12 a.m:
- E Street, NW, from 14th Street to 13th Street, NW
- Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, from 14th Street to 12th Street, NW
- 13th Street, NW, from E Street to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
From 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.:
- Indiana Avenue, NW, from 7th Street to 3rd Street, NW
- 6th Street, NW, from D Street to C Street, NW
From 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.:
- Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, from 14th Street to 4th Street, NW
- All streets crossing Pennsylvania Avenue from 14th Street to 4th Street will be closed between E Street & Constitution Avenue, NW
Lastly, the Japanese-inspired Cherry Blast, taking place at the Carnegie Library, will shut down the 700 to 800 blocks of K Street NW from 2:00 p.m. on Saturday until 2:00 a.m. Sunday.
