Chicago Marathon 2026 Street Closures, As Posted

Which streets close for the Chicago Marathon on October 11, 2026 — and when do they come back? The organizer’s own street-closures page answers in two registers at once. Its headline sentence says course streets “will be closed to traffic starting at 6 a.m. and continuing to 4 p.m.” Its table says something more useful: 41 street segments, mile by mile, with 40 of them closing at 6:00 a.m. race day and reopening in a wave that rolls with the runners — 10:30 a.m. at the first mile, 4:30 p.m. at mile 26, 6:00 p.m. for Roosevelt Road, and the Columbus Drive finish stretch not until Monday at 3:00 p.m. Every closure and reopening time on this page is that table’s own “anticipated” figure, transcribed as posted.

Source: the Bank of America Chicago Marathon’s published street-closures and course pages, retrieved September 9, 2026, both closure tables transcribed whole (41 course rows, 15 Grant Park rows) · the race is a future event as of retrieval: a posted schedule records intent, not events, and the page itself says closures “street and park closures throughout the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course and event may change if deemed necessary by the City of Chicago” · no route or parking guidance here — what the pages state, quoted, and nothing else

Why one answer can’t cover race day

Because the closure is one event and the reopening is 21. Forty of the 41 course segments shut at the same pre-dawn moment — 6:00 a.m. — and those forty carry 21 distinct reopening times among them, rolling with the field from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; the 41st, the finish stretch, keeps its own calendar and is posted to reopen Monday afternoon. The rule behind the wave is stated in the page’s own words: “Streets will re-open promptly as the final runners pass through (at a 15-minute mile pace).” And the hands that do it are named too: “The Chicago Police Department will be responsible for closing and re-opening streets.” So the answer for a given block is not a citywide window — it is one row of the table below, plus the page’s warning that “Access to other streets in these areas not directly on the course may be affected during this timeframe.”

One calculation is ours, and we label it as an illustration, nothing more: if the last starter left with Wave 3 at 8:35 a.m. and held exactly the page’s 15-minute-mile pace, mile 26 would arrive at 3:05 p.m. The posted reopening for the mile-25–26 stretch of Michigan Avenue is 4:30 p.m. — 85 minutes later. The pages do not say what fills that gap — later starters, slower closing pace, cleanup, or plain caution — and neither do we. The arithmetic is shown only so the posted times can be read beside the page’s own pace rule.

The course table, as posted: 41 segments, mile by mile

Transcribed whole from the organizer’s “anticipated course street closures and openings” table as retrieved September 9, 2026. All times are the page’s own anticipated figures for Sunday, October 11, 2026, except where another date is shown; the page states that closures may change.
Mile	Segment	Anticipated closure	Anticipated reopening
1	Columbus Dr.: Start to Grand Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 10:30 a.m.
1	Grand Ave.: Columbus Dr. to Dearborn St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 10:30 a.m.
2	Dearborn St., Grand Ave. to Jackson Blvd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 11:00 a.m.
3	Jackson Blvd.: Dearborn St. to LaSalle St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 11:00 a.m.
3, 4, 5	LaSalle St.: Jackson Blvd. to Stockton Dr.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 11:30 a.m.
6	Stockton Dr.: LaSalle Dr. to Fullerton Dr.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:00 p.m.
6	Fullerton Dr.: Stockton Dr. to Cannon Dr.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:00 p.m.
7	Cannon Dr.: Fullerton Dr. to Sheridan Rd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:00 p.m.
7	Sheridan Rd.: Diversey Pkwy. to Belmont Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:00 p.m.
8	Inner Lakeshore Dr.: Belmont Ave. to Sheridan Rd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:00 p.m.
8	Sheridan Rd.: Inner Lakeshore Dr. to Broadway	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:30 p.m.
9	Broadway: Sheridan Rd. to Briar Pl.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:30 p.m.
10	Broadway: Briar Pl. to Diversey Pkwy.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:45 p.m.
10	Clark St.: Diversey Pkwy. to Fullerton Pkwy.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 12:45 p.m.
11	Clark St.: Fullerton Pkwy. to Webster Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:00 p.m.
11	Webster Ave.: Clark St. to Sedgwick St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:00 p.m.
11	Sedgwick St.: Webster Ave. to North Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:15 p.m.
12	North Ave.: Sedgwick St. to Wells St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:30 p.m.
12	Wells St.: North Ave. to Walton St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:30 p.m.
13	Wells St.: Walton St. to Wacker Dr.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:30 p.m.
13	Wacker Dr.: Wells St. to Adams St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 1:45 p.m.
14, 15	Adams St.: Wacker Dr. to Damen Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 2:00 p.m.
15	Damen Ave.: Adams St. to Jackson Blvd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 2:00 p.m.
15, 16, 17	Jackson Blvd.: Damen Ave. to Halsted St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 2:30 p.m.
18	Halsted St.: Jackson Blvd. to Taylor St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 2:30 p.m.
18, 19	Taylor St.: Halsted St. to Loomis St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 2:45 p.m.
19, 20	Loomis St.: Taylor St. to 18th St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:00 p.m.
20	18th St.: Loomis St. to Halsted St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:15 p.m.
20	Halsted St.: 18th St. to 21st St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:15 p.m.
20, 21	21st St: Halsted to Canalport Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:15 p.m.
20, 21	Canalport Ave.: 21st St. to Cermak Rd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:30 p.m.
21	Cermak Rd.: Canalport Ave. to Wentworth Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:30 p.m.
22, 23	Wentworth Ave.: Cermak Rd. to 26th St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:45 p.m.
23, 24	26th St.: Wentworth Ave. to Michigan Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 3:45 p.m.
24	Michigan Ave.: 26th St. to 35th St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 4:00 p.m.
24	35th St.: Michigan Ave. to Indiana Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 4:00 p.m.
24	Indiana Ave.: 35th St. to 31st St.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 4:15 p.m.
25	31st St.: Indiana Ave. to Michigan Ave.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 4:15 p.m.
25, 26	Michigan Ave.: 31st St. to Roosevelt Rd.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 4:30 p.m.
26	Roosevelt Rd.: Michigan Ave. to Columbus Dr.	Sun 6:00 a.m.	Sun 6:00 p.m.
26	Columbus Dr.: Roosevelt Rd. to Finish	Thu Oct 8, 6:00 a.m.	Mon Oct 12, 3:00 p.m.

Read as a shape, the table is the race itself: the reopenings climb the North Side around midday, come back west along Adams by 2:00 p.m., roll south through Pilsen and Chinatown across the 3 o’clock hour, reach Bronzeville just past 4:00, and close the loop on Michigan Avenue’s mile-25–26 stretch at 4:30 p.m. The one segment that neither closes nor opens with the rest is the finish: Columbus Drive from Roosevelt Road to the finish line is posted to close Thursday, October 8 at 6:00 a.m. and stay closed until Monday, October 12 at 3:00 p.m. — more than four days around a one-day race.

Grant Park closes first — starting September 24

The earliest date on the page is not in October. The page says: “There will be ongoing street and park closures within Grant Park starting on Thursday, September 24.” Its Grant Park table opens with Balbo Drive from Columbus to DuSable Lake Shore Drive — posted closed from Thursday, September 24 at 6:00 a.m. to Friday, October 16 at 3:00 p.m., which is more than 22 days for one street segment. Seven more segments follow on Thursday, October 8 at 4:00 a.m., and the rest join race weekend:

The organizer’s anticipated Grant Park street closures and openings, transcribed whole as retrieved September 9, 2026.
Segment	Anticipated closure	Anticipated reopening
Balbo Dr.: Columbus Dr. to DuSable Lake Shore Drive	Thu Sept 24, 6:00 a.m.	Fri Oct 16, 3:00 p.m.
Balbo Dr.: Michigan Ave. to Columbus Dr.	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Mon Oct 12, 3:00 p.m.
Jackson Dr.: Columbus Dr. to DuSable Lake Shore Drive	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Mon Oct 12, 6:00 a.m.
Jackson Dr.: Michigan Ave. to Columbus Dr.	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 8:00 p.m.
Columbus Dr.: Ida B. Wells Dr. to Roosevelt Rd.	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Mon Oct 12, 3:00 p.m.
Columbus Dr.: Monroe St. to Ida B. Wells Dr.	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 8:00 p.m.
Congress Plaza Dr.: Michigan Ave. (Van Buren St. to Harrison St.)	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 8:00 p.m.
Ida B. Wells Dr.: Michigan Ave. to Columbus Dr.	Thu Oct 8, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 8:00 p.m.
Columbus Dr.: Randolph St. to Monroe St.	Sat Oct 10, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 5:00 p.m.
Roosevelt Rd.: Columbus Dr. to DuSable Lake Shore Drive	Sat Oct 10, 11:00 a.m.	Sun 6:00 p.m.
Monroe St.: Michigan Ave. to DuSable Lake Shore Drive	Sat Oct 10, 4:00 a.m.	Sun 5:00 p.m.
Columbus Dr.: McFetridge Dr. to Roosevelt Rd.	Sun 4:00 a.m.	Sun 6:00 p.m.
Michigan Ave.: Madison St. to Balbo Dr.	Sun 4:00 a.m.	Sun 4:00 p.m.
Roosevelt Rd.: Michigan Ave. to Columbus Dr.	Sun 4:00 a.m.	Sun 6:00 p.m.
Michigan Ave.: Balbo Dr. to Roosevelt Rd.	Sun 5:30 a.m.	Sun 6:00 p.m.

What the pages confirm, and what they cannot tell you

Confirmed, in the pages’ own words: the anticipated closure and reopening time for every posted segment; that no-parking enforcement starts overnight (“No parking zones along the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course will be enforced beginning at 1:00 a.m. on Sunday, October 11.”); and which routes are posted to stay open. That list is its own record: “DuSable Lake Shore Drive Northbound and southbound lanes will remain open.” So do the Dan Ryan, Kennedy, Eisenhower and Stevenson expressways, per the same list — with one posted exception on the Kennedy: “Exit ramps closed: Adams St.”

And one line on the page argues with the page’s own table. The available-routes section says “All streets in the Loop will be open to traffic by 9 a.m. on race day,” defining the Loop as “Loop (Bordered by Wells St., Van Buren St., Wabash Ave. and Lake St.).” But inside those borders sits the course table’s own Jackson Boulevard row, Dearborn to LaSalle — posted to reopen at 11:00 a.m. We do not adjudicate which line will hold on race day; we note the pattern this page has already shown twice: where the prose and the table disagree, the table is the finer record.

What no line on either page can tell you: what actually happens on October 11. The times are anticipated, the page says “Times are subject to change” for the start waves, and the open-routes list carries its own out: “additional streets may be closed by the Chicago Police Department or Bank of America Chicago Marathon officials if deemed necessary.” Nothing here speaks to CTA reroutes, bus detours, or any block not on the course — those live in other records, not this one. And as of September 9, every claim on the page is a plan: whether any street closed or reopened on time is a fact the page cannot hold yet.

Where the record lives

The closures page itself is the standing record, and it says so: “The most up-to-date information will be posted on this page.” That is the organizer’s street-closures page, which also carries the printable closure brochure and flyer. The same page points off-site once for live notices, and we pass the pointer along as posted: it encourages readers to “download the Chicago OEMC app to receive event notifications from the City of Chicago.” The course page holds the map — with its own caveat that the course map is subject to change.

The bottom line

As posted on September 9: all 41 course segments are set to be closed by 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, October 11 — one of them, the Columbus finish stretch, posted to close the Thursday before — and the reopening is not an hour but a seven-and-a-half-hour wave, 10:30 a.m. through 6:00 p.m., posted to follow the last runners at the page’s stated 15-minute-mile pace. Grant Park is posted to start closing September 24. Which row of the table applies to a given block is the whole question — and the row, not the headline window, is the record.

Three more questions the pages can answer

Can a parked car wait until morning? The page’s answer, quoted: “No parking zones along the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course will be enforced beginning at 1:00 a.m. on Sunday, October 11. Vehicles that are not removed from the street by that time will be ticketed and towed to the nearest auto pound.” Is the marathon the only closure that weekend? No — per the same page, “The Abbott Chicago 5K will take place in downtown Chicago on Saturday, October 10, 2026. Street closures will also be in effect for this event.” And why does one race move this much street? The organizer’s course page counts 55,000 participants, 1.7 million spectators, 20 aid stations, and a “flat and fast course” it credits with seven world records — the organizer’s own figures, quoted as claims, not verified counts.

Source: the Bank of America Chicago Marathon’s street closures and course pages, retrieved September 9, 2026. Both anticipated-closure tables were transcribed whole — 41 course rows and 15 Grant Park rows — and every quoted sentence was matched verbatim against the page text at retrieval.
Framing: the race is a future event as of retrieval. Every closure and reopening time on this page is the organizer’s anticipated figure; a posted schedule records intent, and this page never converts intent into events. The pages’ own change caveats are quoted above and apply to every row.
Ours, labeled: the 3:05 p.m. strict-pace arithmetic (8:35 a.m. final wave plus 26 miles at the page’s 15-minute-mile rule) is our calculation and an illustration only, shown beside the posted 4:30 p.m. mile-26 reopening — not a claim about how the reopening will be run.
Not here: no route, parking, or transit guidance; no tow fees or fine figures (none appear on the page, and rates live with the city’s own pages); no claim about any street’s actual state on race day. The organizer’s participant and spectator counts are quoted as its claims.

Compiled by KCM Desk from the marathon organizer’s published closure pages, retrieved September 9, 2026. If you spot an error, corrections come first.