Fourth of July in DC means fun, fireworks and, of course, road closures

Get the birthday candles ready — and by birthday candles, we mean fireworks. D.C.'s 2024 Independence Day celebration is almost here. Here's what you need to know.

Get the birthday candles ready — and by birthday candles, we mean fireworks and other fun stuff on the National Mall. D.C.’s 2024 Independence Day celebration is almost here.

That means events on the Mall and road closures.

Here’s what you need to know, per the National Park Service.

Road closures

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty first. Here are the roads that are going to be closed from 4 a.m. to around 10 p.m.

• Arlington Memorial Bridge and Arlington Memorial Circle on the Virginia end,
  to and including Lincoln Memorial Circle in the District
• Rock Creek Parkway south of Virginia Avenue NW to Lincoln Memorial Circle,
  including all approaches and ramps
• Parkway Drive from Rock Creek Parkway to Lincoln Memorial Circle
• Henry Bacon Drive NW
• Daniel Chester French Drive SW
• Lincoln Memorial Circle and all approaches and ramps into and out of Lincoln
  Memorial Circle, including Henry Bacon Drive N, Daniel Chester French Drive
  SW, 23rd Street NW and 23rd Street SW
• Ramp from Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Bridge to Constitution Avenue NW
  and Independence Avenue SW and Ohio Drive SW; all inbound traffic from the
  bridge will be directed to the E Street Expressway
• Constitution Avenue NW from 23rd Street NW to 14th Street NW
• 7th Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to Independence Avenue SW
• 4th Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to Independence Avenue SW
• 15th Street NW from E Street NW south to Raoul Wallenberg Place SW
• 17th Street NW from E Street NW south to Independence Avenue SW
• 18th Street NW between Constitution Avenue NW and Virginia Avenue NW
• 19th Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to C Street NW
• 20th Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to C Street NW
• 21st Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to C Street NW
• 22nd Street NW from Constitution Avenue NW to C Street NW
• Virginia Avenue NW from Constitution Avenue NW to 18th Street NW
• C Street NW from 17th Street NW to 18th Street NW
• D Street NW from 17th Street NW to 18th Street NW
• Raoul Wallenberg Place SW to Maine Avenue SW
• Independence Avenue SW from 14th Street SW to 23rd Street SW, including
  merge with Rock Creek Parkway
• Madison Drive NW from 15th Street NW to 3rd Street NW
• Jefferson Drive SW from 15th Street SW to 3rd Street SW
• Ohio Drive SW from the Inlet Bridge to Independence Avenue SW
• West Basin Drive SW from Ohio Drive SW to Independence Avenue SW
• East Basin Drive SW east of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial to Ohio Drive SW
• Ramp from southbound and northbound George Washington Memorial Parkway to Memorial Avenue/Circle
• Ramp from northbound Va. Route 110 to Memorial Avenue/Circle
• Ramp from Va. Route 27 to Memorial Avenue/Circle
• The right lane of northbound George Washington Memorial Parkway from the
  14th Street Bridge to Theodore Roosevelt Island

From 12 a.m. Thursday to 11:59 p.m., Anacostia Drive SE from South Capitol Street SE to Marion Barry Avenue SE will be closed to road traffic to allow pedestrians to watch the fireworks.

And from 11 a.m. to around 10 p.m.

• 3rd Street from Pennsylvania Avenue NW to Maryland Avenue SW
• Constitution Avenue NW from Pennsylvania Avenue NW to 14th Street NW
• 14th Street NW from Pennsylvania Avenue NW to Independence Avenue SW

And from 3 p.m. until midnight

• Eastbound U.S. Route 50 ramps to GW Memorial Parkway and roads in the immediate area of U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial
• Southbound GW Memorial Parkway ramp to 14th Street Bridge (9 p.m. — 9:45 p.m. as necessary)
• Northbound GW Memorial Parkway ramp to 14th Street Bridge (9 p.m. — 9:45 p.m. as necessary)

Watercraft restrictions

You’re not going to be able to take your boat everywhere on the Potomac on July 4.

These restrictions are in effect from 9 a.m. July 4 to 9 a.m. July 5.

• There will be a designated anchorage zone north of the 14th Street Bridge on the east side of the Potomac River (West Potomac Park shore side); this zone will be just north of the 14th Street Bridge complex to south of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Anchoring will be allowed until 9 a.m. on July 5.
• There will be a watercraft security/safety zone north of the 14th Street Bridge on the east side of the Potomac River (Washington, D.C., side); this zone will be just north of the entrance to the 14th Street Bridge Complex to just north of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. This means no boating, no anchoring.
• Watercrafts will be allowed to anchor outside of the channel north of the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge and south of the 14th Street Bridge.
• There may be intermittent travel restrictions between the 14th Street Bridge and the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge between the hours of 8:30 p.m. and 10 p.m.
• There will be an intermittent no wake zone between 14th Street Bridge and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge between hours of 9 p.m. and 1 a.m.

Here’s a handy map:

Source