BALTIMORE — It’s a recipe for a traffic nightmare.
This weekend, Baltimore City is booked and busy and drivers should beware of anticipated road closures and heavy congestion.
Watch as city officials prepare to close multiple roads downtown
On Saturday, the Maryland Cycling Classic returns, shutting down nearly 18 miles of roads.
Once those end around 6 p.m., two major events will coincide: the highly-anticipated home Orioles' game celebrating the 30th anniversary of Cal Ripken breaking Lou Gehrig’s record and a sold-out Benson Boone concert at CFG Bank Arena just a few blocks away.
“There will be traffic. This is a major city, with major city events,” Mayor Brandon Scott said. “We want folks to enjoy themselves at the game, at the concert, at the race, but understand that there will be significant traffic impact.”
For the cycling event, most road closures will begin at around 5:30 a.m. with sections of I-83 closing at 3 a.m. to 8 p.m. The course stretches from the Inner Harbor to Patterson Park along Falls road to Northern Parkway and back, with the finish line on Pratt Street and Constellation Way.
Partial closures will begin on Pratt Street Thursday evening at 7 p.m.
Here is a list of all the anticipated road closures and other traffic modifications.
Downtown roads will also be closed to commercial vehicle traffic.
Beginning on Friday evening at 8 p.m., are parking restrictions all along the 17.9 mile route, including Falls Road where Breon Jacobs lives.
“Man, I’m glad I don’t have to catch the bus and we’ve got a van,” he said. "Hoping everything goes smoothly with the commuters and the bikers."
Director of Baltimore City’s DOT Veronica McBeth is encouraging people to use public transit, biking or walking as much as possible on Saturday and if driving, to use the Waze app. You can also find a live map of road closures here.
“Let’s make this a safe and enjoyable weekend for everyone in Baltimore,” McBeth said in a statement.
