The Upper West Side gets a head start on Halloween this Sunday. Columbus Avenue closes to cars from West 68th to 77th Street on Sunday, October 25, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., the first of six Upper West Side blocks listed in the city's Trick-or-Streets program this year. The other five close on Halloween itself.

Trick-or-Streets is run by the city's Department of Transportation. This year the city has a record 160 car-free streets and plazas across the five boroughs, and DOT is handing out 75,000 pieces of candy. New this year, the Municipal Art Society is leading free guided walking tours of participating neighborhoods.

Sunday, October 25

  • Columbus Avenue Open Street, West 68th to 77th Street, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Hosted by the Columbus Avenue BID.

Saturday, October 31

  • Amsterdam Avenue, Cathedral Parkway (110th Street) to 106th Street, 2 to 5 p.m. Hosted by the Columbus Amsterdam BID on its Open Street.
  • West 78th Street, Amsterdam to Columbus Avenue, 4 to 8 p.m. Hosted by the West 78th Street Museum Block Association.
  • West 87th Street, Columbus Avenue to Central Park West, 4 to 9 p.m. A Halloween block party hosted by the West 87th Street Park Garden.
  • West 87th Street, Riverside Drive to West End Avenue, 4:30 to 8 p.m. A Halloween block party organized by the residents of 334 West 87th Street.
  • West 69th Street, Broadway to Central Park West, 5 to 9 p.m. A Halloween party hosted by the West 69th Street Block Association.

Most of the Halloween night closures are block parties run by the people who live on those streets, which means trick-or-treating stoop to stoop on blocks of brownstones, with the street itself free of traffic for a few hours.

Plan a route

The closures line up for a walking loop. Families starting near Lincoln Center can begin at West 69th Street, head up Columbus Avenue to West 78th Street, and finish at either end of West 87th Street. The Amsterdam Avenue closure near Cathedral Parkway runs earlier in the afternoon, from 2 to 5 p.m., and works as a first stop for families uptown.

Citywide

The Manhattan signature event for the program is the Canal Street Open Street and Division Plaza on Wednesday, October 28, from 3 to 7 p.m. The full list of streets in every borough is on the DOT website.

How to go

The 1, 2 and 3 trains stop at 72nd Street, and the 1 also stops at 79th, 86th and 103rd Streets and at 110th Street for the Amsterdam Avenue event. The B and C stop at 72nd, 81st and 86th Streets on Central Park West. Streets are closed to vehicles only during the posted hours.

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