Peachtree Street will ban cars but welcome the fun for Sunday block party
Atlanta Streets Alive returns this weekend to convert the busy, congested Peachtree Street into a community block party.
The event, hosted by the Atlanta Department of Transportation and Propel ATL, shuts down roadways to cars and opens them up for people to stroll, exercise and play in the street, according to the event’s website.
A roughly 2.5-mile stretch of Peachtree Street from Midtown to downtown will close to traffic from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday. The closure starts at 15th Street and runs south to Upper Alabama Street. The event itself takes place from 2-6 p.m.
Cars will be able to cross the closed portions of Peachtree Street at multiple intersections: 14th Street, 10th Street, 3rd Street, Ponce de Leon Avenue, North Avenue, Linden Avenue, Pine Street, Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard, Baker Street, John Portman Boulevard, Ellis Street and Decatur Street.
No parking will be allowed on this stretch of Peachtree Street after midnight Saturday. Signs will be posted informing motorists of the restriction and cars will be towed.
The idea for the open streets project originated decades ago in Bogotá, Colombia, with cyclists. Now, that event runs every Sunday and draws over 1.5 million people to the city to walk, bike and skate along 70 miles of streets closed to cars.
Other cities embraced the idea, and over 400 sites in 30 countries started hosting similar events, according to Atlanta Streets Alive.
“Open streets are about getting communities active and changing the way people view their streets and neighborhoods,” the group’s website says. “By incorporating arts and culture, we create vibrant public spaces that invite people to participate in healthy physical activity.”
Propel ATL, an advocacy group that supports safe streets for pedestrians and cyclists, hosted the event for 10 years before the city’s transportation department got involved in 2023. Last year, the city hosted seven events throughout Atlanta and drew an estimated 93,000 participants.
The Peachtree Street party is the first of the monthly events planned for 2025. Other Atlanta Streets Alive events are scheduled for May 18 from Grant Park to West End, and again on Peachtree Street on June 22.
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