What to know about traveling to Salem during the Halloween season

Local news

Commuter rail is expanding to serve travelers.

As visitors begin to flock to Salem for Halloween celebrations, the city announced planned road closures for October, citing anticipated safety concerns.

Visitors should not plan to enter downtown Salem, especially on weekends – instead, they should park on weekends in free satellite parking lots and use the free shuttle buses, take the Salem Ferry or ride the commuter rail, the mayor’s office said in a statement. statement.

Currently, downtown streets will be closed to traffic no later than 4 p.m. on Halloween Day, as well as Oct. 26 and 27, but officials say the closure could come sooner depending on crowd size.

Updates on traffic and road closures will be published on Facebook and X.

October 3: Haunted Events Parade

The grand opening parade, which kicks off the month-long Halloween celebrations, will begin on Thursday, October 3 at 6:30 p.m. at Shetland Office Park on Congress Street.

Roads along the Haunted Event Parade route will be closed to traffic, and drivers should be prepared for traffic delays on Routes 114 and 1A.

Parking bans will apply on October 3 on the following streets from 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

• Congress Street on both sides from Derby Street to Harbor Street
• Essex Street from Washington Street to Hawthorne Boulevard
• Central Street on both sides from Charter Street to Derby Street
• Derby Street on both sides, from Congress Street to Lafayette Street
• Front Street on both sides from Washington Street to Lafayette Street
• Washington Square on both sides from Essex Street to Brown Street
• Parking spaces at the intersection of Charter Street, Front Street and Central Street
• Washington Street between Essex Street and Front Street, areas measured
• Plot at Frontowa Street

The following roads will be closed on October 3 from 5 p.m. to approximately 9 p.m

• Congress Street will be closed from Harbor Street to Derby Street
• Derby Street will be closed from Congress Street to Central Street
• Commuters will not be able to use Route 1A between New Derby Street and Brown Street, which includes Derby Street, Hawthorne Boulevard and Washington Square at the common entrance
• Frontowa Street
• Essex Street will be closed between North Street and Hawthorne Boulevard
• Washington Street will be closed between New Derby Street and Bridge Street

On October 3, access to the garage will be limited.

• Vehicles parked in the South Harbor garage will not be permitted to leave between 5 and 9 p.m.
• Entrance to the Museum Place garage will only be possible from Church Street or St. Peter Street. Vehicles leaving the Museum Place parking garage will only be able to turn left onto Brown Street and right onto St. Peter Street.

October 12: Witch City 5K

The Salem YMCA Witch City 5K road race starts at 9 a.m. at Salem Willows. No road closures are planned, but officials say traffic disruptions are expected along Memorial Drive, Essex Street, Route 1A, Route 114, including Hawthorne Boulevard, Derby Street and Fort Avenue, to Restaurant Row.

October 19: Devil’s Chase road race

The Devil’s Chase road race starts at 8 a.m. at the Salem Willows soccer field on Fort Avenue. No road closures are planned, but traffic disruptions are expected from Restaurant Row to Memorial Drive to Szetela Lane until 10 p.m. 10:30.

Road closures on September 28-29, October 5-6, 12-14, 19-20, 26-27

Essex Street from Hawthorne Boulevard to New Liberty Street and Essex Street from Barton Square to Washington Street will be closed to through traffic. Parking on the street will not be allowed every Saturday and Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

October 31: Halloween

There will be several road closures and traffic disruptions throughout the day and night on Halloween and into the weekend leading up to the holiday. Authorities expect heavy traffic on routes 114, 1A and 128.

In addition to the downtown street closures, Franklin Street and Bridge Street between the Western Viaduct and Sgt. James Ayube Memorial Drive will also be closed from 9:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. for the closing fireworks display.

On Halloween, the MBTA Salem parking garage will be closed from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Expanded weekend commuter rail services

In October, the commuter rail will increase train frequency to and from Salem to accommodate visitors.

Additional trains from North Station to Salem will run throughout the day on Saturdays and Sundays, with even more services at the most popular travel times, between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. from North Station and between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. south of Salem.

Trains to and from Salem will run every 30 minutes on Halloween.

“This October, take the train, the ferry, come by bike or come by broomstick, but leave your car at home,” Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo said in a statement. “You’ll have a much more enjoyable visit!”