(WASHINGTON, DC) – Mayor Bowser today hosted a press conference on the District’s preparation for Saturday’s March For Our Lives rally. March For Our Lives, which will address gun violence in schools and include a diverse program of student speakers, musical performances, guest speakers and video tributes, is scheduled to take place on Pennsylvania Avenue, NW between 3rd Street and 12th Street. The event will start at noon and go until 3:00 p.m.
“We’re going to have thousands of visitors in our city on Saturday and many of these visitors are going to be young people. Our number one priority is keeping every person in our city safe,” said Mayor Bowser. “As the young people from Parkland, Florida have been preparing for March For Our Lives, the District has been preparing to keep our residents and visitors safe.”
To prepare for Saturday, District agencies have created a comprehensive public safety response, a comprehensive reunification plan to ensure individuals separated from their travel groups can be reunited, and a coordinated District response to ensure residents continue to receive services as scheduled. The District has also created a website, marchforourlives.dc.gov, for residents and visitors to look up information regarding street closures, public transportation, hotels, reunification services, and bus permitting. Additionally, March For Our Lives attendees are encouraged attendees to sign up for free text alerts from the District on safety, weather, traffic, and transit by texting “MARCH24” to 888-777.
Chief of Police Peter Newsham emphasized the impact of the potential crowd size, “We encourage visitors and participants to utilize one of the many public transportation options available but also plan for an extended travel time due to the crowd size and closures.”
DC Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Dr. Chris Rodriguez shared that the District’s Emergency Operations Center will be fully staffed with representatives from District response agencies, federal partners, and representatives from non-government organizations, such as the Red Cross, DC Water, PEPCO, and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. The DC National Guard will provide support with crowd control and other security measures.
A comprehensive list of updates can be found below.
Volunteers Needed: Serve DC – The Mayor’s Office on Volunteerism is organizing hundreds of volunteers to assist visitors with navigating the District and getting safely to and from the march. Washingtonians interested in volunteering should visit serve.dc.gov to register for an orientation held on Thursday, March 22.
Metro: The Federal Triangle Metro Station will be closed completely for the duration of the event. In addition, the 441 entrance to Judiciary Square Metro Station will also be closed. Metro will run rush-hour service levels throughout the day to accommodate expected crowds. The rail system will open at 7:00 a.m. Riders are encouraged to travel as early in the day as possible. Trains will depart end-of-line stations every 8 minutes and additional Red Line trains will run between Grosvenor and Silver Spring. In downtown DC, trains will arrive every 2-4 minutes.
Street Closures and Parking Enforcement: In order to ensure the safety of this activity, the following street closures and Emergency No Parking will be established.
7 pm, Thursday, March 22, 2018, until 10 pm, Sunday, March 25, 2018:
- 300 block of Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
This area will have Emergency No Parking for the duration of the closure.
7 pm, Friday, March 23, 2018, until 10 pm, Sunday, March 2018:
- Constitution Ave from 3rd Street, NW to the East Crossover with Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- Pennsylvania Avenue, NW from 3rd Street, NW to 4th Street, NW
These areas will have Emergency No Parking for the duration of the closure.
Saturday, March 24, 2018 (3 am until approximately 6 pm):
- Louisiana Avenue, NW, from 1st Street, NW, to Constitution Avenue, NW
- First Street from Maryland Avenue, SW to Constitution Avenue, NW – To Include Grant and Peace Circles
- Maryland Avenue from Independence Avenue to First Street, SW
- Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, from 1st Street, NW to 14th Street, NW
- Constitution Avenue, NW, from 1st Street, NW to 12th Street, NW
- Madison Drive, NW from 3rd to 14th Street, NW
- Jefferson Drive, SW from 3rd to 15th Street, NW
- *3rd Street, from D Street, NW to Independence Avenue, SW
*This closure may be made upon overall public safety and traffic safety considerations.
- 4th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- 4th Street from E Street, NW to D Street, NW
- 5th Street from E Street, NW to D Street, NW
- 6th Street from Constitution Avenue, NW to E Street, NW
- 7th Street from Independence Avenue, SW to E Street, NW
- 8th Street from E Street, NW to D Street, NW
- 9th Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
- 10th Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
- 11th Street from E Street, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- *12th Street from E Street, NW to Constitution Avenue, NW
*Access to the Trump Hotel will be permitted from the 12th Street side based upon public safety considerations.
- 13th Street from E Street, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- *13th ½ Street from D Street, NW to Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
*Access to the Ronald Regan Building will be permitted from the 14th Street side based upon public safety considerations.
- C Street, NW from 3rd Street to 6th Street, NW
- D Street, NW from 3rd Street to Indiana Ave, NW
- D Street, NW from 6th Street to 9th Street, NW
- L’Enfant Plaza, SW will only be allowed to Exit to D Street, SW from the Plaza Area
Traffic will be allowed to travel Eastbound and Westbound, but will not be able to travel Northbound from the following streets:
- C Street, SW from 3rd to 6th Street, SW
- D Street, SW from 3rd to 6th Street, SW
- School Street, SW from 4th to 6th Street, SW
- Maryland Avenue, SW from 3rd Street, SW to 7th Street, SW
Traffic will not be allowed to travel Northbound on the following streets:
- 3rd Street, SW from E Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 4th Street, SW from E Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 6th Street SW from E Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 7th Street, SW from D Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 8th Street, SW from C Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 9th Street, SW from C Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
- 12th Street, SW from C Street, SW to Independence Ave, SW
The streets above will also have Emergency No Parking for the duration of the closures.
It is noted that Independence Avenue from 3rd to 14th Street, SW will be open to travel in both directions, but Independence Avenue may be closed to all vehicle traffic should public safety concerns dictated.
- The 12th Street Tunnel from I-395 Eastbound will be open. All traffic must travel Westbound on Constitution Avenue, NW. The tunnel MAY be closed based upon public safety concerns.
- The 9th Street Tunnel will be closed for the duration of the event.
- The 3rd Street Tunnel from I-395 will be open in both directions of travel.
Based upon public safety concerns, during the event on Saturday, March 24, 2018, additional closures may occur in the following area:
- 1st Street, NW to 18th Street, NW
- E Street, NW to E Street, SW
The streets above will also have Emergency No Parking for the duration of the closures.
