More than 13,000 runners are expected to take part in Saturday’s annual St. Jude Rock ‘N’ Roll Marathon events (the full marathon, half marathon, wheelchair or 5K races) through multiple parts of Nashville.
Officers will be working late Friday night into the early morning hours of Saturday to ensure the security of the course. Citizens are strongly urged to mind the bagged parking meters and other no parking signs. Illegally parked vehicles will be towed beginning at 12 a.m. Saturday.
The complete 26.2-mile marathon route will close to vehicle traffic by 5:45 a.m. Saturday, although the start area along lower Broadway will close to vehicle traffic at 3 a.m.
Persons coming downtown for the start (6:30 a.m. for the 5K, 6:45 a.m. for the Wheelchair race, 7:20 a.m. for the full and half marathon) and who intend to park in the Pinnacle Bank garage should be in that facility by 6:15 a.m. The final securing of the route will prevent traffic flow into the Pinnacle garage after 6:15 a.m. Those intending to park in the Music City Center garage must access it from Korean Veterans Boulevard at 6th Avenue South.
James Robertson Parkway and Woodland Street Bridges will be closed. Runners and spectators are strongly urged to arrive in the downtown area early and not wait until the last minute. A late surge of vehicles will cause traffic delays on interstate off ramps and around Nissan Stadium parking lots.
Traffic along the course will be restricted until all runners have passed. However, every effort will be made to accommodate persons who need to cross the route to get into their places of employment or homes, so long as it does not directly interfere with the race. Emergency vehicles will be given priority to cross the route. Priority will also be given to emergency hospital access.
More than 300 MNPD officers, along with our law enforcement partners (and private security representatives who will be staffing certain traffic posts) will be working Saturday to provide a safe environment for all. Partners specifically assisting the Hazardous Devices Unit include the FBI, Tennessee Highway Patrol, Nashville International Airport Police, and Vanderbilt University Police.
Regardless of where a runner or spectator is along the route, the police department encourages citizens to adopt the “see something, say something” motto. If you see something suspicious or concerning, say something to the nearest officer, or call our event hotline at 615-880-1515.