MEDIA: SCDPS and BPS will be sharing this information on social media if you would like to re-share.

COLUMBIA — Residents and visitors in Columbia should be aware of several planned road closures on Friday, June 13, 2025, from approximately 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the downtown area to accommodate this year's Palmetto Boys and Girls State parade.

The annual Palmetto Boys and Girls State youth leadership event will bring approximately 40 police-escorted buses and a parade through downtown Columbia on Friday. The SC Bureau of Protective Services (BPS), with assistance from the SC Highway Patrol (SCHP), the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED), Columbia Police Department (CPD), and the University of South Carolina Police Department (USCPD), will help with the bus escorts and parade.

The parade will begin at 10:30 a.m. at the intersection of Main Street and Blanding Street and end at the State House at approximately 11 a.m.

Downtown traffic will be impacted from at least 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the following areas:

• Intersection of I-126 and Elmwood Avenue
• Intersection of I-126 and Huger Street
• Intersection of Huger Street and Laurel Street
• Intersection of Laurel Street and Gadsden Street
• Intersection of Laurel Street and Assembly Street
• Intersection of Assembly Street and Blanding Street

Roads closed to thru traffic from 9 a.m. to 10:45 a.m.:

• 1100 - 1200 blocks of Blanding Street, between Assembly Street and Sumter Street

Roads closed to thru traffic from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.:

• Main Street, from Gervais Street to Blanding Street
• 1100 & 1200 blocks of Gervais Street

The South Carolina Department of Public Safety includes the Highway Patrol, State Transport Police, Bureau of Protective Services, Office of Highway Safety and Justice Programs, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame. Our mission is to ensure public safety by protecting and serving the people of South Carolina and its visitors.