Patriots 2019 Super Bowl Victory Parade: All You Need to Know
Bring on the Duck Boats and keep it peaceful, mayor stresses
The New England Patriots will be receiving a warm Duck Boat welcome-back-to-Boston Tuesday, with temperatures near 60 degrees expected for the official Super Bowl LIII victory parade, which begins at 11 am.
The much-loved—and let’s be honest, much-hated—Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in the NFL championship game Sunday night in Atlanta. It was the lowest-scoring Super Bowl ever, with both teams kicking only field goals until the fourth quarter, when the Patriots finally scored a touchdown with seven minutes left. A win is still a win, however, and this one marked quarterback Tom Brady’s, and the Pats’, sixth championship and tied the New England team with the Pittsburgh Steelers for most Super Bowl wins.
Now, about that parade (and in case this sounds familiar, it’s barely three months since the World Series champion Boston Red Sox had their own celebration):
The Patriots Duck Boat parade will start at the Hynes Convention Center, at Boylston and Hereford streets. After making its way down Boylston through Copley Square, it turns left onto Tremont Street to Cambridge Street, ending at Boston City Hall. It’s the same route the team took after the 2017 Super Bowl win.
Unlike past Patriots victory parades, there will not be a rally at City Hall. In announcing the parade, Martin Walsh, Boston mayor, emphasized that it’s a family event and that no public drinking or smoking marijuana will be tolerated. And after an incident during the 2018 Sox parade when a tossed beer can struck manager Alex Cora, Walsh reminded fans that throwing any projectiles is prohibited—and dangerous. “Do not throw things, do not throw beers, do not throw anything at those boats,” Walsh said at the press conference announcing the parade.
Some other key details—starting at 9 am, a few streets will be closed to traffic because of the parade:
- Boylston Street, Massachusetts Avenue to Tremont Street
- Tremont Street, Boylston Street to Court Street
- Cambridge Street, Court Street to New Chardon Street
When these streets reopen depends on the size of the crowd; each will reopen only after people leave and the area is cleaned up. The city expects to reopen Boylston Street first, followed by Tremont Street, and then Cambridge Street.
People are urged to take public transportation, as there will be a number of parking restrictions. Both sides of Charles Street have already been closed to parking between the Public Garden center gate and Beacon Street. The street will remain closed on Tuesday along with others, including Boylston, Tremont, and Bowdoin. Find a full list of street closures here.
The city will have two accessible viewing areas for people with disabilities, one at Copley Square, next to the Copley MBTA station elevator, the other at City Hall Plaza, next to the Government Center MBTA station. Both of these stations are ADA-accessible. The MBTA will provide rush-hour service on the Green, Red, Orange, and Blue Lines throughout the day to meet additional demand.
“These parades have become commonplace and a great tradition in this city,” says Kenneth Elmore (Wheelock’87), associate provost and dean of students. “If you have a moment, check out this Tuesday’s parade.” But Elmore also wants to clarify one rumor that occasionally makes the rounds come parade time. “Classes will be held on Tuesday,” he stresses. “I encourage you to make every effort to fit a little revelry into your schedule. Only in Boston!”
Find more information about what the city has planned for the parade here.
Alex Pena (College of Communication’19) can be reached at alexgp97@bu.edu.
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