DC road closures, water restrictions for July Fourth

The National Parks Service will once again host fireworks on the National Mall on Monday to celebrate the Fourth of July.

This means that many roads in and around downtown D.C. will be closed.

If you were hoping to avoid driving by using Metro, prepare for long wait times. That’s because rail capacity will be lower than normal on Independence Day.



D.C. police said there will also be watercraft restrictions on the Potomac River for July 4 and July 5.

You can find all road closures, site closures and watercraft restrictions below. You can also find an interactive map of road closures online.

Road Closures

DC Police released a map of road closures to help residents get around on July 4.

Starting at 12 a.m. (midnight) July 3

  • Ohio Drive SW between 23rd Street SW and West Basin Drive SW

Starting at 6 a.m. on July 4 and until approximately 12 a.m. (midnight) on July 5

  • Arlington Memorial Bridge and Arlington Memorial Circle, to and including Lincoln Memorial Circle
  • 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 from Constitution Avenue to Lincoln Memorial Circle, NW
  • Daniel Chest French Drive SW from Independence Ave SW to Lincoln Memorial Circle
  • Lincoln Memorial Circle and all approaches and ramps into and out of Lincoln Memorial Circle, including Henry Bacon Drive NW, Daniel Chester French Drive SW, 23rd Street NW and 23rd Street SW
  • The 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 15th St NW
  • 23rd St SW from Independence Ave SW to Lincoln Memorial Cir and Constitution Ave to Lincoln Memorial Circle
  • 17th St NW from Constitution Ave NW to Independence Ave SW
  • Homefront Drive SW
  • 15th Street NW from Constitution Ave NW to Independence Ave SW
  • Raoul Wallenberg Place SW to Maine Avenue SW
  • Independence Avenue SW from 14th Street SW to 23rd Street SW, including merging with Rock Creek Parkway
  • Ohio Drive SW from 23rd St SW to Inlet Bridge
  • Madison Drive NW from 15th Street NW to 3rd Street NW
  • Jefferson Drive SW from 15th Street SW to 3rd Street SW
  • East Basin Drive SW east of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial to Ohio Drive SW
  • West Basin Drive SW from Ohio Drive SW to Independence Avenue, SW
  • The ramp from southbound and northbound George Washington Memorial Parkway (GWMP) to Memorial Avenue /Circle
  • The ramp from northbound Va. Route 110 to Memorial Avenue/Circle
  • The 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
  • Access to East Potomac Park from I-395 will be by National Park Service permit only after 4 p.m.

Closed from 3 p.m. on July 4 until approximately 12 a.m. (midnight) on July 5

  • Eastbound U.S. Route 50 ramps to the George Washington Memorial Parkway and roads in the immediate area of U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial;
  • Southbound GWMP ramp to 14th Street Bridge (8 p.m. – 9:45 p.m. as necessary)
  • Northbound GWMP ramp to 14th Street Bridge (8 p.m. – 9:45 p.m. as necessary)

Site Closures

  • The World War II Memorial will close at 4 p.m. on July 4. Cleanup of the memorial will begin immediately following the fireworks show and the site will reopen as soon as the cleanup is complete.
  • Paddle boats at the Tidal Basin will not operate.
  • Big Bus Tours will not operate on the Mall on July 4.
  • The D.C. Circulator’s National Mall route will not operate on July 4.
  • East Potomac Golf Course will be open during regular operating hours on July 4 (6:30 a.m. – 9 p.m.).
  • East Potomac Tennis Center will close at 3 p.m. on July 4
  • Water taxi service to the National Mall will not operate on July 4.

Watercraft Restrictions

D.C. police released a map of Potomac River featuring its July Fourth restrictions.

Restrictions will be in place on the Potomac River from approximately 9 a.m. on July 4 until 9 a.m. on 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 shoreside). The zone will be just north of the 14th Street Bridge complex to the south of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Anchoring will be allowed until 9 a.m. on July 5.
  • There will be a watercraft safety zone north of the 14th Street Bridge on the east side of the Potomac River in D.C. This zone will be just north of the entrance to the 14th St Bridge Complex to just north of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. No boating and no anchoring allowed.
  • 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 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.
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