Drivers heading to the Tall Ships Erie Festival will have mostly clear sailing.
The Bayfront Parkway between Sassafras Street Extension and Holland Street will remain open for the Aug. 21-24 event. That central part of the parkway will close for construction after Labor Day.
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“There were a lot of considerations that went into determining when the Bayfront Parkway closure would go into place. The Tall Ships Erie Festival was certainly one of them,” said Dax Nulph, assistant district executive for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation in northwestern Pennsylvania.
Parking for Tall Ships Erie will mostly be in downtown parking lots and garages. Only those with VIP weekend tickets will be able to park on the bayfront side of the parkway, in the Bayfront Convention Center lot. Single-day VIP tickets do not include festival parking.
Shuttle service between the downtown and bayfront will be available during the event.
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Lower State Street will remain closed
State Street will remain closed to vehicles between the parkway and Second Street during the festival.
Parkway traffic to Erie’s downtown will need to exit at Holland Street. The parkway exit from Sassafras Street Extension south to the bluff is closed to all but emergency vehicles.
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Pedestrian access
The U.S. Brig Niagara, at left, and the Appledore IV, center, are docked at Dobbins Landing following the Parade of Sail for the 2022 Tall Ships Erie Festival.
Visitors will be able to walk along lower State Street to the main festival grounds at Dobbins Landing. A designated walkway will be open during the event.
“We recognize the closure of State Street near the parkway will have an impact on visitors to the festival, so we looked at ways to help mitigate that while maintaining our safety standards,” Nulph said. “Our construction team developed a plan that will allow residents and visitors to use the sidewalk adjacent to the west side of the street during the festival.
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“We ask people to follow the directional signs and stay on the designated path.”
At other times while lower State Street remains closed, pedestrians are detoured to Holland Street.
What to know about city streets
There are some changes on Erie streets while State Street remains closed between Second Street and the Bayfront Parkway.
West Third Street between Peach and Sassafras streets has been converted from one-way to two-way traffic, with parking prohibited on both sides of the street.
Parking also is prohibited on West Second Street from Peach to Sassafras, East Third Street from French Street to Holland Street, and Holland Street between East Third and East Sixth streets.
Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Tall Ships Erie: What to know about driving, walking around the event