How To Get Around Rockford During The St. Patrick’s Day Parade

The St. Patrick's Day parade is this Saturday in downtown Rockford but there's also a few different things going on that could make a trip downtown a nightmare.

The parade kicks off at 3 p.m., there's also a huge wrestling tournament at the BMO Harris Bank Center. There's also hockey tournament too nearby at Riverview Ice House.

This could be a problem for anyone driving downtown on Saturday. First thing you need to know is the parade route, which according to WREX "will form at 7th Street and 4th Avenue, proceed north on 7th to State, west to Main Street and then North on Main Street to Memorial Hall north of Mulberry Street, where the parade will disband."

There will also be police controlled "roads such as 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 7th and Wyman streets."

This will also provide a major headache for anyone trying to get around the parade using the side streets.

The best bet is to use some of the other major roadways along the outside of the route. If you are traveling east to west or vice versa, take the Whitman Street bridge and shimmy along until you get past the parade.

If you're coming up from the south take Main Street to 15th Street over to Broadway and up avoid the parade. If you're going west, take Morgan Street before you get too deep downtown.

From the north? Take 251 south until you hit Whitman Street to go west or grab the 6th Street exit and work your way east past the parade.

No guarantees that any of these will work as parade plans sometimes change. That said. if you're trying to get where you're going in Rockford with little trouble, you should consider using these routes.