With Fourth of July landing on a Thursday, many New Yorkers might be planning to make a run for and skip town for a five-day getaway from the city. Between crowded streets, road closures and a new location for the Macy’s fireworks show, movement around the metro area is sure to be hectic.
Traffic expert “Gridlock” Sam Schwartz told Gothamist he expects Wednesday afternoon, especially around 2 p.m., to be the worst time to travel. He is suggesting New Yorkers make moves in the morning or at night.
“Many offices work remotely but require everybody to be in on a Wednesday, so this Wednesday may be a lot heavier than people normally expect and people will be traveling,” he said.
People should also anticipate that the Macy’s Fireworks’ return to the Hudson River will also shift traffic patterns, Schwartz added.
“I think it’s because the people are used to the fireworks being on the East River,” Schwartz said. “We’re not going to see that this year. It’s moving to the west. So if you’re returning or if you’re traveling on July 4th in the evening, stick with the FDR drive or better yet try to take the BQE and that’ll avoid many of the rubberneckers that are watching the fireworks.”
He said the end of the weekend won’t be much fun either, especially if the weather is nice this weekend.
Here is what to expect if you’re traveling this week, along with some more tips from Gridlock Sam.
In the skies
Procrastinators be warned, this weekend is not one to be messed with. If your bags aren’t already packed while you’re reading this, what are you doing?
According to the Port Authority, 5.5 million travelers are expected to fly or drive over the next five-days, a new record for the holiday. That’s an increase of 9.6% compared to the same time in pre-pandemic July of 2019 and 6.1% increase over last year.
Wednesday and Thursday are expected to be the busiest days at the nearby airports.
The agency expects more than 2.1 million passengers to travel through John F. Kennedy International, Newark Liberty International, LaGuardia and New York Stewart International airports from Wednesday, July 3 through Sunday, July 7.
In a travel advisory posted Monday, the Port Authority encouraged air travelers to plan ahead for additional travel time and expect longer wait times to get through TSA due to higher passenger volumes and ongoing construction. Those flying domestic flights should arrive at least two hours in advance, while those on international flights should arrive with three hours to spare.
To encourage the use of mass transit, AirTrain JFK single ride fare will be reduced to $4.25 for passengers traveling to and from JFK the MTA announced. You might want to take advantage of that.
On the roads
If you’re traveling by car, pack some extra snacks. The AAA is predicting this Fourth of July will be the busiest ever on the roads.
The Port Authority is predicting that 3.4 million vehicles will cross its bridges and tunnels over the holiday period, above the 2019 and 2023 traffic volumes over the same period.
Schwartz said those driving on Wednesday can expect a lot of traffic on the Belt Parkway, the Van Wyck Expressway, The Grand Central Parkway, the New Jersey Turnpike and all of the major bridges out of the city to be jammed.
“Best time to travel would be Wednesday in the morning or Wednesday after eight o’clock, by then the traffic will be breaking,” he said. “The afternoon will be pretty bad starting at one or two o’clock and lasting until six or seven o’clock, but it really does break. People do want to get away earlier, so by 8 o’clock, it’s usually smooth sailing out of the city.”
He added that Thursday morning is “actually a pretty good day to travel,” but avoid being in a car late Thursday afternoon on the West Side Highway, since it will be jammed due to the fireworks.
“We’re going to get people, even on the George Washington Bridge, trying to see the fireworks. That’ll be bumper to bumper now that the fireworks have been moved to the Hudson River,” he said.
Here are the lane closures for those bridges:
George Washington Bridge:
Holland Tunnel:
- From 11:59 p.m. Friday, July 5, to 9 a.m. Saturday, July 6, the New Jersey-bound tube of the Holland Tunnel will be closed due to ongoing Superstorm Sandy repairs. The New York-bound tube remains open during work.
- From 11 p.m. Sunday, July 7, to 5:30 a.m. Monday, July 8, the New Jersey-bound tube of the Holland Tunnel will be closed due to ongoing Sandy-related repairs. The New York-bound tube remains open during work. For more information on the repair project, click here.
- From 11 p.m. Sunday, July 7, to 5 a.m. Monday, July 8, one eastbound lane will be closed.
Lincoln Tunnel:
- From 11 p.m. Thursday, July 4, to 5 a.m. Friday, July 5, the south tube will be closed. New York-bound traffic in the center tube and New Jersey-bound traffic in the north tube will not be affected.
Bayonne Bridge:
- On Thursday, July 4, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. The Bayonne Bridge shared use path for pedestrians and bicyclists will be closed.
Goethals Bridge:
- On Thursday, July 4, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., the Goethals Bridge shared use path for pedestrians and bicyclists will be closed.
Meanwhile, if you’re heading out of or through Work Island (aka Manhattan), here are the street closures for the Macy’s 4th of July Annual Fireworks Celebration, according to the city’s Department of Transportation weekly traffic advisory.
Street closures:
- Joe DiMaggio Highway / West Side Highway / West Street / 12th Avenue / 11th Avenue between Spring Street and West 46th Street
- Clarkson Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
- Christopher Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
- Charles Street between West Street and Washington Street
- West 11th Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
- West 12th Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
- West 13th Street between West Street/11th Avenue and Washington Street
- West 15th Street between West Street/11th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 17th Street between West Street/11th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 20th Street between West Street/11th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 22nd Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 24th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 11th Avenue
- West 26th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 11th Avenue
- West 29th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 34th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 11th Avenue
- West 40th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 10th Avenue
- West 41st Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 11th Avenue
- West 44th Street between West Street/12th Avenue and 11th Avenue
- 11th Avenue between West 22nd Street and West 46th Street
On the rails
In its travel advisory last week MTA announced that Subways, buses and Staten Island railway are set to operate on a Saturday schedule for July 4th. The Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North will operate on a Sunday schedule, with off-peak fares in effect all day.
The Port Authority said PATH Trains will also be running on a Saturday schedule this Thursday. The agency added additional trains that will be running between Newark-Penn Station and World Trade Center every 10 minutes from 5:30 p.m. to 11:59 p.m and between Journal Square, Hoboken and 33 St. every 10 minutes from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.
To accommodate the expected increase in beachgoers, the MTA will run full-length trains on the Rockaway Park Shuttle. Additional A and F trains are planned to go on the tracks after the fireworks to accommodate the additional commuters.
Planned signal modernization and maintenance work will still continue through the holiday, meaning Brooklyn-bound A and C trains will run on the F line between West 4th Street and Jay St.-Metrotech.
Coney Island-bound F trains in Brooklyn will bypass Avenue I, Bay Pkwy, Avenue N and Avenue P to accommodate ongoing work on the Culver Line. and G trains will operate between Church Avenue and Nassau Avenue, but free B94 shuttle buses are running between Nassau Avenue and Court Square In Queens, Manhattan-bound F trains are bypassing 169 St. to accommodate track maintenance at the station.
