The return of the Philadelphia Cycling Classic will close roads
Some SEPTA bus routes will also be detoured.
The Philadelphia Cycling Classic is back after a decade-long hiatus, bringing loads of cycling fans, events, and road closures along with it.
The race, which dates back to 1985, begins and ends on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. It loops up through Fairmount Park to the grueling “Manayunk Wall,” and back down for a finish line evoking the Tour de France’s conclusion at the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
The marquee race takes place on Sunday, Aug. 30, but there’s a weekend full of events leading up to it. Here’s what you need to know:
Saturday road closures
The racing begins at 9 a.m. on Aug. 29 with the Philadelphia Cycling Classic Amateur Time Trial, an eight-mile individual event. Martin Luther King Drive will be closed from Eakins Oval to Falls Bridge beginning at 8 a.m. Sedgley Drive between Girard Avenue and Poplar Drive will be closed from noon until the end of the event.
The weekend’s free fan fest also begins Saturday, running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. It will take place near the Iroquois Sculpture at Eakins Oval.
Sunday road closures
Plan ahead if you need to drive near the 14.4-mile path for the main women’s and men’s races, beginning at 8:30 a.m. and noon respectively, and the morning charity ride, which begins at 6:30 a.m.
The following road closures will take effect from 3 a.m. until 10 p.m. on Aug. 30.
Near the Benjamin Franklin Parkway:
Benjamin Franklin Parkway from 17th Street to Eakins Oval (all lanes)
Eakins Oval (all lanes)
I-676 ramps at 22nd Street
I-76 eastbound off-ramp at Spring Garden Street
Spring Garden Tunnel
Rear of Art Museum — Anne d’Harnoncourt Drive
1900 Race Street
1800-1900 Vine Street
Park Towne Place between 22nd and 24th Streets
2000-2100 Winter Street
Spring Garden Street between Pennsylvania Avenue and 31st Street
All roads from Arch to Spring Garden Streets, 18th to 22nd Streets (access maintained for residents)
All roads from Arch Street to Fairmount Avenue, 22nd to Corinthian Streets (access maintained for residents)
23rd Street between Pennsylvania Avenue and Eakins Oval
22nd Street between Winter Street and Pennsylvania Avenue
21st Street between Winter Street and Pennsylvania Avenue
20th Street between Arch Street and Pennsylvania Avenue
19th Street between Callowhill and Cherry Streets
16th, 17th, and 18th Streets, between Arch and Spring Garden Streets, if public safety conditions warrant
1600-1700 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, if public safety conditions warrant
Fairmount Park:
Kelly Drive (all lanes)
Waterworks Drive
Reservoir Drive
Lemon Hill
Sedgley Drive between Girard Avenue and Kelly Drive
Poplar Drive between Girard Avenue and Kelly Drive
MLK Drive from Falls Bridge to Eakins Oval
Manayunk and Roxborough:
Ridge Avenue between Kelly Drive and Hermit Street
Main Street between Ridge Avenue and Green Lane
Levering Street between Main and Tower Streets
Cresson Street between Levering and Cotton Streets
Lyceum Avenue between Tower and Mitchell Streets
Pechin Street between Green Lane and Roxborough Avenue
Roxborough Avenue between Mitchell and Terrace Streets
Manayunk Avenue between Roxborough Avenue and Osborn Street
Rector Street between Terrace and Pechin Streets
Pensdale Street between Terrace and Lauriston Streets
Kingsley Street between Manayunk Avenue and Lauriston Street
Salaignac Street between Manayunk Avenue and Lauriston Street
Terrace Street between Dawson Street and Ridge Avenue
Vassar Street from Ridge Avenue to Cresson Street
Mitchell Street from Connaroe to Martin Streets
Additional streets: unit blocks of Shurs Lane, Jamestown Street, Pensdale Street, Roxborough Avenue, Grape Street, Levering Street, Gay Street, Connaroe Street, Carson Street, Rector Street, Cotton Street, Connaroe Street, and the 300 block of Burnside Street
SEPTA detours
The following SEPTA bus routes will be detoured through Kelly Drive, Manayunk, and Roxborough beginning Aug. 30 at 4 a.m.: 7, 9, 27, 32, 33, 38, 43, 48, 49, 52, 60, 61, 65, 82, 124/125, K.
For information on specific route changes, visit www.septa.org.
