The Five Boro Bike Tour is returning Sunday, with tens of thousands of cyclists expected to attend the 40-mile charity ride to raise funds for free bike education programming.
The city will shut down major thoroughfares to facilitate the ride Sunday, including portions of the FDR Drive, the BQE, the Ed Koch-Queensboro Bridge, and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.
The programs supported by the tour reach 30,000 New Yorkers a year, according to Bike New York, the nonprofit that organizes the tour.
“The future of New York City is on two wheels,” Mayor Eric Adams said in a letter published by the organization. “Bike New York has been an important ally in our united mission to promote cycling, protect and empower bike riders in our city, and encourage forms of movement that reduce congestion and greenhouse gas emissions."
The city estimates 32,000 cyclists will take part in the ride, taking them from the Battery to the Bronx, back down the FDR Drive to the Queensboro Bridge and into Astoria before heading south through Brooklyn and ultimately over the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.
A “Finish Festival” will be held at the 40-mile mark at the Empire Outlets shopping center in Brighton Heights, right around the corner from the Staten Island Ferry.
The MTA is encouraging cyclists to use the Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road to get into the city, temporarily suspending bike permit requirements Saturday and Sunday. Subway stations the agency prefers riders to use include Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall, Bowling Green, the three Chambers Street stops, World Trade Center, and Cortlandt Street.
The transit authority is also asking riders not use Fulton Street, either of the Wall Street stations, Park Place, Rector Street, or Whitehall Street "as they are not well-equipped to handle large volumes of bicycles."
Streets will be closed beginning at 7 a.m., and some will stay closed as late as 7 p.m.
Here’s a complete list of street closures for the tour:
Manhattan Portion:
- Greenwich Street between Battery Place and Morris Street
- Trinity Place between Morris Street and Liberty Street
- Church Street between Liberty Street and Canal Street
- Chambers Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Worth Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Canal Street between Broadway and 6th Avenue
- 6th Avenue between Franklin Street and West 59th Street
- West 59th Street between 6th Avenue and 5th Avenue
- Grand Army Plaza between West 59th Street and East Drive
- East Drive between Grand Army Plaza and Center Drive
- Center Drive between 5th Avenue and East Drive
- East Drive between Center Drive and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard
- Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard between West 110th Street and West 135th Street
- East / West 135th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard and Madison Avenue
- Madison Avenue between East 135th Street and East 138th Street
- Madison Avenue Bridge (Bronx-bound)
- Peter Minuit Plaza between State Street and South Street
- Whitehall Street between South Street and Water Street
- State Street between Whitehall Street and Battery Place
- Battery Place between State Street and West Street
- Morris Street between Broadway and Greenwich Street
- Albany Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
- Greenwich Street between Rector Street and Cedar Street
- West Broadway between Vesey Street and Barclay Street
- West Broadway between Murray Street and Warren Street
- Rector Street between Broadway and Greenwich Street
- Cedar Street between Broadway and Greenwich Street
- Liberty Street between Broadway and Greenwich Street
- Dey Street between Broadway and Church Street
- Vesey Street between West Street and West Broadway
- Barclay Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Warren Street between West Street and West Broadway
- Murray Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Duane Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Thomas Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Leonard Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Franklin Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- White Street between Broadway and West Broadway
- Walker Street between Broadway and 6th Avenue
- Lispenard Street between Broadway and 6th Avenue
Bronx Portion:
- 138th Street between Madison Avenue Bridge and 3rd Avenue
- 3rd Avenue between 138th Street and 3rd Avenue Bridge
- Rider Avenue between 138th Street and 137th Street
- 137th Street between Rider Avenue and 3rd Avenue
- 3rd Avenue Bridge (Manhattan-bound)
Manhattan Portion (Continued):
- Harlem River Drive / FDR Drive (Southbound) between 3rd Avenue Bridge and East 116th Street
- East 116th Street between FDR Drive and Pleasant Avenue
- Pleasant Avenue between East 116th Street and East 114th Street
- Harlem River Drive / FDR Drive (Southbound) between 116th Street and 63rd Street Exit
- East 63rd Street between FDR Drive (Southbound) and Queensboro Bridge Exit
- Queensboro Bridge Exit between East 63rd Street and East 60th Street
- Queensboro Bridge Upper Level (Manhattan-bound)
Queens Portion:
- 21st Street between Queens Plaza South and Hoyt Avenue North
- Queens Plaza South between 21st Street and Vernon Boulevard / Alternate Route
- Hoyt Avenue North between 21st Street and 19th Street
- 19th Street between Hoyt Avenue North and Ditmars Boulevard
- Ditmars Boulevard between 19th Street and Shore Boulevard
- Shore Boulevard between Ditmars Boulevard and Astoria Park South
- Astoria Park South between Shore Boulevard and14th Street
- 14th Street between Astoria Park South and 31st Avenue
- 31st Avenue between 14th Street and Vernon Boulevard
- Vernon Boulevard between 31st Avenue and 44th Drive
- 44th Drive between Vernon Boulevard and 11th Street
- 11th Street between 44th Drive and Pulaski Bridge
- Pulaski Bridge (Brooklyn-bound)
Brooklyn Portion:
- McGuiness Boulevard between Pulaski Bridge and Greenpoint Avenue
- Java Street between McGuinness Boulevard and Franklin Street
- Greenpoint Avenue between McGuinness Boulevard and Franklin Street
- Franklin Street between Java Street and North 14th Street
- Kent Avenue between North 14th Street and Williamsburg Street West
- Williamsburg Street West between Kent Avenue and Flushing Avenue
- Flushing Avenue between Williamsburg Street West and Navy Street
- North Elliot Place between Flushing Avenue and Park Avenue
- Navy Street between Flushing Avenue and York Street
- York Street between Navy Street and Gold Street
- Gold Street between York Street and Front Street
- Front Street between Gold Street and Old Fulton Street
- Old Fulton between Furman Street and Prospect Street
- Cadman Plaza West between Prospect Street and Tillary Street
- Tillary Street between Cadman Plaza West and Adams Street
- Brooklyn Bridge Promenade between Tillary Street and Centre Street
- Furman Street between Old Fulton Street and Atlantic Avenue
- Atlantic Avenue between Furman Street and Columbia Street
- Columbia Street between Atlantic Avenue and BQE West Entrance Columbia Street
- BQE / Gowanus Expressway between BQE West Entrance Columbia Street and Verrazano
- Verrazano Bridge Lower Level (Staten Island-bound)
Staten Island Portion:
- Bay Street between New York Avenue and Hylan Boulevard
- Hylan Boulevard between Bay Street and Edgewater Street
- Edgewater Street/ Front Street between Hylan Boulevard and Hannah Street
- Hannah Street between Front Street and Bay Street
- Bay Street between Hannah Street and Richmond Terrace
- Richmond Terrace between Bay Street and Nicholas Street Wall Street between Richmond Terrace and Dead End