With three days to go until Monday’s Democratic National Convention, residents and workers around the United Center were already bracing for delays and battling road closures.
“Detour, detour all day long,” Robert Lockhart said while waiting for a ride on the Near West Side. “If you have to come here in this area, be prepared to say, ‘Oh man, the traffic is going to start, so let me plan around that.’
Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. The Interstate 55 northbound exit ramp, including the I-55 turn lane, will be closed except to vehicles authorized by the US Secret Service.
The following closures will be in effect starting at 7:00 PM on Saturday on the Near West Side:
- Madison Street from North Hoyne Avenue to North Paulina Street
- Damen Avenue from West Lake Street to West Van Buren
- Adams Street from South Damen Avenue to Paulina Street
- Washington Street from North Damen Avenue to North Wood Street
Closures will also start around McCormick Place.
Starting Friday evening, two vehicle security checks will be in effect. One is at South Indiana Avenue and 18th Street, while the other is near Wabash Avenue and Cermak Road.
Residents and those visiting the area can also expect the following closures at 7pm on Saturday:
- Indiana Avenue from 18th to East 24th Place
- Michigan Avenue from 21st to 25th Streets
- Cermak Road from Wabash Avenue to MLK Jr. Drive
- 23rd Street from Wabash to Indiana Avenue
- Prairie Avenue from Cullerton Street to 24th Place
- 24th Street from Wabash to Indiana Avenue
- Calumet Avenue from Cullerton Street to 24th Place
- 24th from Wabash Avenue to MLK Jr. Drive
- MLK Jr. Drive from Cermak Road to 25th Street
- East 21st Street closed from and including South Michigan Avenue to South Calumet Avenue. Note: East 21st Street will be open from west of South Michigan Avenue to and including South Wabash Avenue and East 21st Street.
No trucks or vehicles larger than cars allowed on I-55 between DuSable Lake Shore Drive and South State Street in both directions.