The NYC Marathon is coming—here’s what you need to know

Everything you need to know about the annual TCS New York City Marathon

It's hard to believe that it's almost time for the annual TCS New York City Marathon, yet here it is—just a few weeks away. On Sunday, November 4, thousands of runners will once again flood the streets of New York in an endeavor to complete to 26.2-mile trek through each of the five boroughs.

The marathon will begin in Staten Island and will conclude in southern end of Central Park. If you're looking to participate, we've got some bad news: the deadline to qualify was last year, however, you can most certainly show up as a spectator and support the runners. You can bet that there will be loads of street closures as a result of the marathon, so if you're looking for intel on that, keep reading.

What time is the NYC marathon?

The marathon, happening on Sunday, November 4, will begin at 8:30 a.m. in Staten Island. Groups of runners begin at different times—the wheelchair division, for example, kicks things off at 8:30, but the final wave of runners won't get started until 11 a.m.

What's the NYC marathon route?

TL;DR version: runners begin in Staten Island and cross the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge into Brooklyn; they'll run up Fourth Avenue, then close to the Brooklyn waterfront and over the Pulaski Bridge into Long Island City; after a short run through Queens, they'll cross the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan, heading north through the Upper East Side and Harlem; then, they cross the Willis Avenue Bridge, run through the Bronx, and then back into Manhattan over the Madison Avenue bridge; then, it's the final leg down Fifth Avenue and through Central Park, before ending at the park's southwestern end.

There's a course map that better illustrates what the route looks like.

Where can I watch the NYC marathon?

Plenty of places! The official marathon website has details on the best places to watch—namely, the ones where people celebrate the most, like Brooklyn's Fourth Avenue—but anywhere along the course is fair game.

The marathon will also be broadcast on ABC7 and livestreamed via the channel's website.

What streets will be closed for the NYC marathon?

The Department of Transportation will publish its official list of street closures as the dates draws closer, but it's unlikely that it'll be drastically different from last year's version (PDF!).

How can I get around during the NYC marathon?

The MTA typically releases a memo regarding anticipated service changes for marathon day a few days before the big event, so we'll keep you updated as that information because available. One of the biggest things to keep in mind is that the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge will be closed from 7 a.m. to around 3 p.m. Several others, like the Queensboro, are DOT-operated and will be affected as well.

• TCS New York City Marathon [Official]