Pioneer Day parades, marathons to disrupt Salt Lake City traffic

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — If you plan to head into Salt Lake City on Thursday for work or otherwise, be prepared for road closures and detours.

On July 24, in honor of Pioneer Day, several roads will be closed to make room for the Days of ’47 Parade

and the Deseret News Marathon.

The Salt Lake City Police Department said to help ensure the safety of everyone involved in both the parade and the marathon, some segments of both the racecourse and parade route will be completely closed to traffic.

“Some of these select street closures could be in place for several hours. All roadway users are encouraged to follow all posted signs and directions from officers along the racecourse and parade route,” SLCPD said in a media release.

Community members are encouraged to review the maps for both the parade and the marathon, found below, and avoid the areas, if possible. Drivers are also encouraged to use extreme caution when traveling through Salt Lake City on Thursday, as police expect a significant increase in traffic, pedestrians, and bicycles on city streets.

Days of ’47 Parade

The annual Pioneer Day parade will start rolling through the streets of downtown Salt Lake City at 9 a.m., featuring colorful floats, bands, and horses among other entertainment that will delight thousands of spectators.

The parade will start at South Temple and State Street and will march down 200 East until turning onto 900 South. The parade will come to an end at Liberty Park near 900 South and 600 East.

Deseret New Marathon

The marathon celebrating Pioneer Day is expected to begin at 5:30 a.m., at the top of Big Mountain above Emigration Canyon. Marathon officials said the race course will only be closed for a maximum of six hours, in accordance with SLCPD.

The full race course will cut through Bonneville Golf Course along Wasatch Drive after leaving Emmigration Canyon and will continue before turning around onto Foothill Drive by Thunderbird Drive. The race will then follow 2100 East onto 500 South before turning north onto 1300 East. Racers will then continue the race west on South Temple before turning south onto 200 East and finishing the race on 900 South at Liberty Park.

After 9 a.m., when the Days of ’47 Parade begins, the race will detour along 300 East, turning down to 200 East at 700 South before running up 800 South to 600 East and ending at Liberty Park.

In addition to the full 26.2-mile marathon, racers will also be competing in the annual half-marathon, 10K, 5K and 1K races. Each race has different starting points, but follows the same race course as the full marathon.

New this year, racers can also take part in the Relay race, breaking up the course into four different legs to complete as a team of two to four runners.

For more details on the Deseret News Marathon, click here.