CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A record field of 13,250 runners is set to fill Charlotte streets Saturday as the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon, now in its 22nd year, gets underway, and drivers should expect closures in uptown and along the course through midafternoon.
The event includes a full marathon, a half marathon and a 5K. Runners in the shortest race leave first, at 7:10 a.m., and the two longer races follow 10 minutes later. Everyone lines up at 525 S. Tryon St.
The full 26.2-mile course heads out of uptown and touches Dilworth, Myers Park and Eastover, swings through Plaza Midwood, NoDa and Greenway, and passes Wilmore and South End on its way back to the finish. People who live along the route may have limited access to their streets while runners pass, so it is worth checking the course map before heading out.
Some closures started Friday at 1 p.m. on Mint Street from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to Fourth Street, on Third Street from Mint to Poplar streets, and on Fourth Street from Graham to Mint streets.
More streets shut at 4 a.m. Saturday. They include South Tryon Street from Brooklyn Village Avenue to Fourth Street, Levine Avenue from South Tryon to Church Street, the block of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from Church over to College, and Third Street from Church to College Street.
The city transportation department expects South Tryon and its cross streets to reopen around 9 a.m. Saturday. Every closed street should be open again by 4 p.m.
Race organizers also put out a turn-by-turn chart estimating when the lead and last runners will reach each turn, which can help drivers time trips around the course.
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Filed under: Charlotte NC Traffic News
