The Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures take effect on Sunday, October 11, 2026, the day the Bank of America Chicago Marathon runs. Course streets close to traffic from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., and parked cars on the course are towed starting at 1 a.m. that morning.
If you are touring apartments or moving that weekend, this page lists the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures street by street, when each one reopens, and which of the 290 buildings in this directory sit directly on the course.
Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures: the key facts
- The Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures run from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 11, 2026.
- Towing from course streets starts at 1 a.m. that morning, five hours before the streets themselves close.
- Stretches reopen on a staggered schedule, the earliest of the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures at 10:30 a.m. and the last at 6 p.m.
- 38 of the 290 buildings in this directory have an address on a closed course street.
- South Loop has the most at 10, then Gold Coast and Old Town at 9 and River North at 6.
- The Abbott Chicago 5K runs downtown the day before, Saturday, October 10, with its own street closures.
When is the 2026 Chicago Marathon?
Sunday, October 11, 2026. It is the 48th running of the race. The Chicago Marathon is held on the second Sunday of October each year, so the date is predictable in future years as well. Organizers expect about 55,000 participants.
The Abbott Chicago 5K runs downtown the day before, Saturday, October 10, with its own street closures.
Which streets close? The Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures by street
Every street on the course closes at 6 a.m. on Sunday, October 11. Each stretch reopens once the last runners pass at a 15-minute-mile pace, so the north end of the course reopens first and the south end last. Streets next to the course can also be affected. The table below lists the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures stretch by stretch with the scheduled reopening time for each.
- No-parking enforcement: begins 1 a.m. Sunday on the course and in posted zones. Vehicles are ticketed and towed. Towed vehicle line: 312-744-4444.
- Grant Park: closures start earlier. Parts of Columbus Drive, Jackson Drive, Balbo Drive, Ida B. Wells Drive and Congress Plaza Drive close Thursday, October 8, and some stay closed until Monday, October 12. Balbo Drive between Columbus and DuSable Lake Shore Drive has been closed since September 24 and is scheduled to reopen October 16.
- Michigan Avenue downtown: Madison to Balbo is closed 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday; Balbo to Roosevelt is closed 5:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Loop: all streets inside Wells, Van Buren, Wabash and Lake are scheduled to reopen by 9 a.m.
- Staying open: DuSable Lake Shore Drive, the Kennedy (Adams St. exit closed), Dan Ryan, Eisenhower and Stevenson expressways.
Source: the official Chicago Marathon street closures page, which has the full street-by-street schedule and the course map. Times can change; check it before race weekend.
Which Chicago apartment buildings are on the marathon course?
38 of the 290 buildings in this directory have a street address on a closed stretch of the course or on the Michigan Avenue closure between Balbo and Roosevelt. The list below is matched on each building’s listed street address. A building a block away can still have its garage or loading entrance on a closed street, so check the course map for any building you are considering.
The chart below shows where those buildings sit relative to the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures, grouped by directory neighborhood.
| Closed stretch | Scheduled to reopen | Buildings |
|---|---|---|
| Columbus Dr. (start to Grand Ave.) | 10:30 a.m. | Aqua at Lakeshore East |
| Grand Ave. (Columbus Dr. to Dearborn St.) | 10:30 a.m. | The Saint Grand |
| LaSalle St. (Jackson Blvd. to Stockton Dr.) | 11:30 a.m. | Millennium on LaSalle, The Ardus, Eight O Five, 1000 N LaSalle, 1120 N LaSalle, The Oliver on LaSalle, The Sinclair, The Archer, 1250 LaSalle |
| Sheridan Rd. (Diversey Pkwy. to Belmont Ave.) | 12:00 p.m. | The Belmont by Reside |
| Clark St. (Diversey Pkwy. to Fullerton Pkwy.) | 12:45 p.m. | Park Lincoln by Reside, 2555 N Clark, The Kent |
| Wells St. (North Ave. to Wacker Dr.) | 1:30 p.m. | Gallery on Wells, 640 North Wells, The Leo, AMLI 808, 868 N Wells, 920 N Wells, 1225 Old Town, 1325 N Wells Apartments, Cobbler Square Lofts, 1435 N Wells |
| Adams St. (Wacker Dr. to Damen Ave.) | 2:00 p.m. | Arkadia West Loop |
| Jackson Blvd. (Damen Ave. to Halsted St.) | 2:30 p.m. | The Jax, Reside on Jackson |
| Michigan Ave. (31st St. to Roosevelt Rd.) | 4:30 p.m. | Park Michigan, Sky55 Chicago, Arrive Michigan Avenue, 1407 On Michigan, Nevéseno, The Shelby |
| Michigan Ave. (Balbo Dr. to Roosevelt Rd.), closes 5:30 a.m. | 6:00 p.m. | Sentral Chicago Michigan Avenue, 820 Michigan, 1000M, Eleven Thirty |
Which neighborhoods does the Chicago Marathon course affect?
The course starts and finishes in Grant Park and loops north to Lakeview, west to the West Loop and Near West Side, and south through Pilsen, Chinatown and Bronzeville before returning up Michigan Avenue. Of the 12 neighborhoods in this directory, 10 have streets on the course:
| Neighborhood | Course streets | Listed buildings on the course |
|---|---|---|
| Gold Coast / Old Town | LaSalle, Wells, North Ave. | 9 |
| Lakeview | Sheridan, Inner Lake Shore Dr., Broadway | 1 |
| Lincoln Park | Stockton, Cannon, Clark, Webster, Sedgwick | 3 |
| Near North Side | LaSalle, Wells | 3 |
| Near West Side | Taylor, Loomis | 0 |
| River North | LaSalle, Wells, Grand, Dearborn | 6 |
| South Loop | Michigan, Roosevelt, Columbus | 10 |
| Streeterville / Lakeshore East | Columbus, Grand | 2 |
| The Loop | Dearborn, Jackson, LaSalle, Wacker, Adams | 1 |
| West Loop / Fulton Market | Adams, Jackson, Halsted | 3 |
Not on the course: Uptown / Edgewater and Wicker Park / Bucktown / Logan Square. Buildings there are not affected by course closures, though trips downtown that morning will be.
Nine of the ten neighborhoods above have at least one listed building on a closed street. Near West Side has course streets running through it but no listed building on them, so the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures affect no building in this directory there.
Touring apartments or moving around the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures
Plan any tour or move around the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures rather than through them.
- Tours on Sunday, October 11: for a building on the course, book after its street’s reopening time in the table above, or pick another day. Taking the CTA is simpler than driving; check transitchicago.com for bus reroutes.
- Tours on Saturday, October 10: the Abbott Chicago 5K closes downtown streets that morning, and Grant Park closures are already in place.
- Moving that weekend: a truck parked on the course after 1 a.m. Sunday will be towed. If your move-in date lands on October 11 and your building is on the course, ask the leasing office about moving a day earlier or later and about elevator reservations.
- Driving through: DuSable Lake Shore Drive and the expressways stay open, but getting on and off near the course takes longer.
What is it like to live on the Chicago Marathon course?
For one Sunday a year, your street is closed to cars for part of the day and lined with spectators. The date is set (the second Sunday of October), closure and towing notices are posted ahead of time, and streets reopen the same afternoon. Anyone who parks on the street should plan to move the car the night before. For residents who run or like to watch, the race comes to the front door.
To compare buildings on and off the course, start with the A–Z building index or a neighborhood page above. For transit distances, see 10 Chicago Apartment Buildings Near CTA Train Stations.
Building matches use each listing’s street address in this directory as of September 26, 2026. Street closure times are from the Chicago Marathon’s published schedule and may change.
None of this is a reason to rule a building out, since the Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures affect a single Sunday.
What this Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures page does not cover
This Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures page is a reference for apartment hunters, not a race-day guide. It does not publish the course map, spectator viewing spots, transit reroutes, packet pickup or runner information, all of which the race organizers publish themselves.
It does not publish rent, availability or pricing for any building, here or anywhere else on this site, and a building appearing in the table above is a record of its address, not a recommendation.
The Chicago Marathon 2026 street closures listed on this page are the times organizers published in September 2026. Reopening times are scheduled rather than guaranteed, because each stretch reopens once the last runners have passed. Confirm anything time-critical against the official course page before you book a moving truck or lock in a tour.
