13 Alert Traffic: July 4th, FIFA World Cup road closures
Preparations for Freedom Over Texas near downtown are underway and will result in street closures around Eleanor Tinsley Park:
- I-45 ramps at Allen Parkway: already closed; will reopen on Sunday at 9 a.m. (some will reopen 5 p.m. Sunday)
- Allen Parkway: closed outbound at Bagby and inbound at Taft. (setup happening in this area also affecting Sabine Street, Gillette, Walker, Crosby, and Heiner)
- Bagby: will close northbound at Dallas on morning of July 4; will close southbound at Rusk by 3 p.m.
- Allen Parkway and Memorial Drive: will see expanded closures in Eleanor Tinsley Park area late in the day.
**Parking is available in the Theatre District on Rusk, with access between Bagby and Smith, or at the Hobby Center, which also enters on Rusk. When driving into downtown, you may want to enter Midtown since the Astros and FIFA Fanfest will make the East End exits busy, and you can also park in Midtown or along the rail and take the train into Downtown.
And while America is celebrating its 250th birthday on July 4, Houston is also hosting its last FIFA World Cup match. TxDOT is holding off on major interstate construction closures due to both the holiday and the influx of international soccer fans.
Here's the timeline:
- Houston stadium opens three hours before the Canada vs. Morocco Round of 16 match, which starts at noon.
- Drivers will see increased traffic on the West and South Loops, on major corridors such as Kirby Drive (parts of Kirby will close), and extra traffic along Main, Fannin, and even, likely, south of the Loop along Bellfort.
- Look for additional riders on the south part of the METRO Rail line, Red Line.
- Once the match is over, drivers will likely see extra traffic in the area late in the afternoon, depending on how long the game lasts.
