Thousands of runners take over St. Charles Avenue during the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in 2011. (Sabree Hill, Uptown Messenger file photo)
Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon runners will take to the streets — most of the streets, it seems — on Sunday (Feb. 9). Residents need to plan ahead for road closures and transportation delays.
The Central City, Garden District, Touro, Milan, Uptown, Audubon and Lower Garden District neighborhoods will be affected by the event. Informational door hangers will be distributed to residents, businesses and organizations along the route, event organizers said.
Runners will also traverse the Central Business District, French Quarter, Marigny, Treme-Lafitte, Seventh Ward, Bayou St. John, Fairgrounds, St. Bernard, Filmore, Lake Terrace & Oaks areas, and Lakeshore-Lake Vista.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon is held in 30 cities internationally, offering athletes entertainment with live music along some the world’s most scenic urban routes. Headliners for the 2020 Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in New Orleans are Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, DJ Fresh and Band Camp. Bands will play on stages throughout the route.
The full 26.2-mile marathon begins at 7:30 a.m. Sunday and ends at 3 p.m. Runners will begin at Lafayette Square, proceed through the Central Business District, follow St. Charles Avenue to the university area, where they will double-back along St. Charles to the CBD. They then will pass through the French Quarter and up Esplanade Avenue to the Lakeshore area, traveling through Lake Terrace & Oaks and Lakeshore-Lake Vista. Runners will proceed back down Wisner Boulevard and will end in City Park. The full route is below.
The half marathon is Sunday morning starting at 7:30 a.m. in the Warehouse District and then traveling up St. Charles Avenue to Audubon Park before heading to City Park, where the race ends. The 10K starts at 7 a.m. on Sunday in the Warehouse District and traverses the Lower Garden District, French Quarter and Esplanade Ave before ending in City Park.
The 5K race is held Saturday (Feb. 8) morning through the French Quarter, CBD and Warehouse District.
Traffic will be restricted until the last participant passes and course materials are removed. At most points along the course, pedestrians and bicyclists may cross streets during safe gaps in runners.
Roads along the route are expected to be closed Sunday within the following time-frames:
Lafayette Square area: closed 3 a.m. to 9 a.m.
St. Charles Avenue area: closed 6 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
Convention Center and Cruise Terminal area: closed 6 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
French Quarter area: closed 6 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
Esplanade Ridge and Bayou St. John area: closed 6:15 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Lakeview area: closed 7 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
Lakeshore Drive area: closed 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
St. Charles streetcar service will not operate until all runners have cleared St. Charles Avenue. Additional routes will have delays or detours during the event, including but not limited to: 47 & 48 Canal streetcars and the 11 Magazine, 55 Elysian Fields, 88 St. Claude, 91 Jackson-Esplanade and 94 Broad buses.
All RTA service alerts, updates, & detours can also be accessed by downloading the RTA’s GoMobile app. To learn more, visit www.norta.com or call Ride Line at 504-248-3900.
Streets along the race course will be marked with No Parking signs and will be monitored for illegal parking. Call 504-658-8100 for parking enforcement.
See additional information here. The route and map are below.
START: St. Charles & Poydras streets
Proceed up Poydras Street
Left on S. Rampart Street
Left on Howard Avenue
Right on St. Charles Avenue through the circle
Proceed on St. Charles Avenue
U-turn at West Road
Proceed on St. Charles Avenue
Right on Melpomene Street
Left on Magazine Street
Right on Julia Street
Left on Tchoupitoulas Street
Right on Poydras Street
Left on S. Peters Street
Proceed onto Decatur Street
Left on Esplanade Avenue
Right on Wisner Boulevard
Right on Robert E. Lee Boulevard
Left on St. Bernard Avenue
Right on Oriole Street
Proceed onto Lakeshore Drive
U-turn after Franklin Avenue
Proceed on Lakeshore Drive
U-turn at Marconi Drive
Proceed down St. Bernard Avenue
Right on Robert E. Lee Boulevard
Left on Wisner Boulevard
Right on Friedrichs Avenue
END: Roosevelt Mall, City Park
