The 70th annual Newport St. Patrick’s Day Parade steps off at 11 a.m. Saturday from Newport City Hall, 43 Broadway, with staging beginning at 9 a.m.
The route will travel down Broadway into Washington Square, south onto Thames Street, onto America’s Cup Avenue and back onto Thames Street, ending on Carroll Avenue at St. Augustine’s Church. The parade will be held rain or shine.
Parking will be prohibited from 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. on several streets along the route, including Broadway from Cranston Avenue to Washington Square at Thames Street; Equality Park Place and Equality Park West; the west side of Dr. Marcus F. Wheatland Blvd.; Lower Thames Street from America’s Cup Avenue to Morton Avenue; Carroll Avenue from Morton Avenue to Harrison Avenue; Narragansett Avenue between Spring Street and Bellevue Avenue; and both sides of America’s Cup Avenue at the Gateway Center.
Public parking is available at the Gateway Center on America’s Cup Avenue and the Waterfront Lot on Mary Street. Heavy traffic is expected throughout the city.
The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority will also detour three bus routes to accommodate the parade. Routes 60, 63 and 67 will operate on modified paths between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., bypassing Thames Street and America’s Cup Avenue with detours routed through JT Connell Highway and Farewell Street. Route 60 (Newport/Providence) inbound trips will be detoured through noon, with outbound trips affected through 1:30 p.m. Routes 63 (Broadway/Shopping Center) and 67 (Bellevue/Mansions/Salve Regina) will run on detour for both inbound and outbound trips through approximately 12:15 p.m. For more information, call RIPTA at 401-781-9400 or visit RIPTA.com.
The Newport Police Department will have uniformed and plainclothes officers stationed along the parade route, strictly enforcing city ordinances including open containers of alcohol in public, underage drinking, disorderly conduct and noise violations.
Law enforcement agencies from across Aquidneck Island and South County will also be conducting a high-visibility impaired driving enforcement campaign throughout the day. The Providence Police Department’s Breath Alcohol Testing Mobile Unit will be on hand to process suspected impaired drivers.
Authorities urge parade-goers to arrange transportation before drinking or use a rideshare service. Anyone who spots a suspected impaired driver is asked to call 911.