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St. Patrick's Day parade returns to NYC streets after pandemic pause
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 16, 2022
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Scott Lynch / Gothamist
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 16, 2022
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After a two-year, pandemic-induced hiatus, the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade is coming back to Fifth Avenue on Thursday.
The parade, which attracts hundreds of thousands of revelers, starts at 11 a.m., with marchers starting on Fifth Avenue at 44th Street, traveling up Fifth to East 79th Street (see street closures below).
In 2020, the parade was canceled on March 10, just a week before it was scheduled, and as the scope of the pandemic was still unclear. People were still flocking to nightclubs when the decision was made, but by March 22, the city was shut down.
No parades were held in 2021 until later in the year, when city officials allowed the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade to return. Organizers of the St. Patrick's Day parade cheered in November, "We look forward to greeting everyone in 2022 on Fifth Avenue as we celebrate 260 years of marching (since 1762) on the streets of New York honoring the legacy of St Patrick, our Irish Heritage and culture."
There will be a moment of silence at 12 p.m. on Thursday, held by Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan outside St. Patrick's Cathedral to "mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11 and the victims of the pandemic," according to organizers, who say the parade's participants will face south, towards the World Trade Center site. Members of the FDNY, NYPD, Port Authority, and 69th Regiment bands will play "Taps" and "Amazing Grace."
An important reminder: alcohol is banned on MTA trains and the agency has in past years banned alcohol for 24 hours on St. Patrick's Day in its facilities such as Grand Central Terminal. And remember, masks are still required when traveling on mass transit or inside mass transit stations.
Here's the Department of Transportation's list of street closures:
Location(s):
- Vanderbilt Avenue between 43rd Street and 46th Street
- 43rd Street between Vanderbilt Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 44th Street between Vanderbilt Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 45th Street between Vanderbilt Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 46th Street between Vanderbilt Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 47th Street between Park Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 48th Street between Park Avenue and 6th Avenue
Route:
- 5th Avenue between 79th Street and 42nd Street
Dispersal:
- 5th Avenue between 86th Street and 79th Street
- 79th Street between Park Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 80th Street between Lexington Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 81st Street between Lexington Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 82nd Street between Lexington Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 83rd Street between Lexington Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 84th Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
Miscellaneous:
- 49th Street between Madison Avenue and Rockefeller Plaza
- 50th Street between Madison Avenue and Rockefeller Plaza
- 51st Street between Madison Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 53rd Street between Madison Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 58th Street between Madison Avenue and 6th Avenue
- 62nd Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 63rd Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 64th Street between Park Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 65th Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 70th Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 71st Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 72nd Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- 78th Street between Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue
- Madison Avenue between 42nd Street and 86th Street
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new york city
manhattan
st. patrick's day
st. patrick's day parade
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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