From the Grove to the Beach, major road closures on tap this weekend. Here are the details

More than 20,000 runners will wind through the streets of Miami Beach and Miami before dawn Sunday for the 2023 Life Time Miami Marathon and Half Marathon. The event also shapes up as a different test of endurance for a much larger and easily irritated group — South Florida drivers.

Be warned, weekend motorists: On race day Sunday, streets will be closed from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. throughout downtown Miami, Brickell, Miami Beach and Coconut Grove, plus some lanes on the MacArthur, Venetian and Rickenbacker causeways. And some limited street closures actually start early Saturday.

So drivers looking to avoid the frustration of potential traffic jams will either avoid the area or calculate alternate routes around the race areas.

Miami police released a timeline to help plan weekend excursions.

▪ 8 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 28: All northbound traffic entering Biscayne Boulevard at Chopin Plaza will be rerouted west on Southeast Second Street. Southbound traffic on Biscayne Boulevard will be detoured at Northeast First Street and rerouted west. This will close the boulevard north and south from Northeast First Street to Southeast First Street.

▪ 5 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 29 — race day: Road closures for the event will reopen at about 11 a.m. following the tail of the race, Miami police said. Shortly after the last participant finishes the race, all road closures except for Biscayne Boulevard counter-flow will reopen. The Biscayne Boulevard counter-flow is expected to open around 5 p.m.

There is wiggle room in these estimates. All participants are expected to have finished the race and be off the course by 2 p.m. Sunday. But most of the roadways will be cleared earlier as police from Miami, Miami Beach and Miami-Dade will use rolling reopening procedures, according to Miami Marathon officials. One exception will be Biscayne Boulevard’s counter-flow, which is expected to open around 5 p.m.

Aside from the major causeways, here are some familiar roadways that will be shut down during the race: Biscayne Boulevard, Brickell Avenue, North Miami Avenue, Alton Road, Ocean Drive, South Pointe Drive, Washington Avenue, Meridian Avenue, Dade Boulevard, South Miami Avenue, South Bayshore Drive, Tigertail Avenue and Grand Avenue.

Miami Beach details

Miami Beach police list the following street closings for the city’s portion of the Miami Marathon on Sunday.

▪ MacArthur Causeway eastbound from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m.

▪ Venetian Causeway westbound from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

▪ Miami Beach course area south on Alton Road to the Tropical 5K’s finish on South Pointe Drive from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.

If you want to get onto or get off of Miami Beach in the five-hour window of 5-10 a.m. police recommend using the Julia Tuttle Causeway, which connects 41st Street in Miami Beach to Northeast 36th Street in Miami.

What about accessing other attractions?

The race doesn’t go to Key Biscayne but access will be difficult due to the race’s proximity to the Rickenbacker Causeway, according to a traffic advisory released by race organizers. Eastbound and westbound traffic on the Rickenbacker, for instance, will be blocked from Southwest 26th Road to West Powell Bridge from 6:40 a.m. to 11:50 a.m.

PortMiami remains open, but you’ll need to access the port through Northeast Fifth Street.

Everything at the Arsht Center for the Performing Arts at 1300 Biscayne Blvd. during the weekend, including afternoon and evening performances of Zoetic Stage’s co-presentation of “American Rhapsody,” is later in the day.

On Sunday, there is a Health and Wealth Summit at 2 p.m. at the Arsht.

“But even that shouldn’t be a big issue since roads reopen at 11 a.m. Sunday,” said Suzette Espinosa Fuentes, the theater’s vice president of communication.

Miami-Dade Transit

If you are heading to the event on race day, you can opt for Metrorail rather than driving into downtown Miami, race officials suggested.

Metrorail trains will depart the southernmost station (Dadeland South) and the northernmost station (Palmetto) starting at 4 a.m. Sunday. Metrorail service will pick up at all stops along the way to the Government Center Station in downtown Miami. Once at Government Center, transfer to the Metromover and hop on any train to the following stations:

▪ Start line: College/Bayside Station

▪ Finish line: Bayfront Park and College/Bayside Station

▪ Cheering zone: Use the Omni Loop and get off at the Adrienne Arsht Center stop at the Omni Bus Terminal.

Metrorail fare is $2.25 per trip or $5.65 for a one-day pass. Metrorail garages and surface lots also will open at 4 a.m. Sunday for the race with free parking all day for transit riders.

Brightline can also get you to the marathon Sunday. Rail service to downtown Miami from Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach will start at 3:48 a.m. Later-morning trains are also scheduled to get spectators to the finish line.

On Sunday, several Metrobus routes will have a slight detour until about 12:30 p.m. These include: 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 21, 22, 32, 77, B, L, M, S, 115, 120, 150, 207 and 208.

What about the weather?

“The weather should cooperate,” CBS Miami meteorologist Lissette Gonzalez tweeted on Friday. She’s calling for a “comfortable” low 70s Sunday morning — about 71 at the start of the race. Breezy and mild with a few showers possible and highs in the low 80s.