By Tiphanie Colon-Lomontanaro and Tom Liddy
DNAinfo Reporters
MANHATTAN — This weekend many streets and pedestrian crossings throughout Lower Manhattan will be closed for the commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of 9/11, potentially creating a travel nightmare for those in the area.
According to the NYPD, the zone of closures is bounded by Chambers Street to the north, Battery Place to the south, Broadway to the East and West Street to the West.
The announcement of the street closures, which are more extensive this year due to the anticipated attendance of Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, drew the ire of Downtown residents.
Residents of Battery Park City, which is heavily affected by the closures, were advised to carry their IDs showing proof of address on Sept. 11, but it's unclear if that would allow them to cross pedestrian and vehicular restricted areas.
Motorists can also anticipate highway and river crossing closures as well as frozen zones south of Chambers Street throughout the weekend. They are encouraged to avoid the area if possible.
On Saturday, Sept. 10, starting at 12:01 A.M, northbound West Street will be closed from Albany Street to Vesey Street. It will reopen at 5 a.m. Monday.
Then at 5 a.m. Sunday, southbound West Street will be closed from Battery Place to Chambers Street, reopening at 5 a.m. Monday. Church Street/Trinity Place will be closed from Rector to Barclay streets from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Broadway will remain open the entire time.
The Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel and the streets surrounding it will be especially problematic and officials are warning motorists to stay away. Heavy delays are expected and changes to street closures can be made at any minute, the NYPD said.
Beginning at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and lasting through Sunday, traffic coming out of the tunnel will be diverted to the Battery Park underpass.
In addition, the Battery Park underpass from the southbound FDR Drive will be closed during this time. Drivers going to Brooklyn from this direction can use local streets to get to the Battery Tunnel, but are advised to take other crossings instead, according to the NYPD.
Beginning at 5 a.m. Sunday, motorists going to Brooklyn will not be able to access the Battery Tunnel on West Street. The only access will be from local streets in Battery Park south of the tunnel entrance.
From 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, the Trinity Place exit will be closed. And the West Street underpass will be closed from 11 p.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Monday.
Between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m. Sunday, motorists should expect frozen zones, including travel in both directions in the tunnel, for the arrival and departure of President Barack Obama.
Walking around in the area won't be any easier. The pedestrian bridges at Liberty and Vesey streets will be closed throughout the day Sunday.
A number of streets will be closed from Saturday at 8 a.m. to Sunday at 8 p.m. and pedestrian access will be limited in the area:
• Warren Street between West Street and West Broadway
• Murray Street between West Street and Church Street
• Barclay Street between West Street and Church Street
• Park Place between Greenwich Street and Broadway
• Greenwich Street between Warren Street and Vesey Street
• West Broadway between Warren Street and Vesey Street
• Vesey Street between North End Avenue and West Street
• Vesey, Fulton, Dey and Cortlandt Streets between Church Street and Broadway
• Liberty Street between South End Avenue and West Street and between Greenwich Street and Broadway
• Albany Street between South End Avenue and Greenwich Street
• Cedar Street between Greenwich Street and Broadway
• Thames Street between Greenwich Street and Broadway
• Carlisle Street between West Street and Greenwich Street
• South End Avenue between Liberty Street and Thames Street
• Washington Street between Albany Street and Rector Street
• Greenwich Street between Liberty Street and Rector Street
Mass transit will also be affected on Sept. 11. R trains will bypass the Cortlandt Street station from Sunday morning until the afternoon and the World Trade Center PATH station will shut down from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sunday. However, beginning at 5 a.m., extra trains will run to the World Trade Center.
Subway staircases may also be closed on Church Street, south of Murray Street, from 7 to 11 a.m. and there will be diversions on the following buses: M5, M20, M22, X1 and X10.
