New York City is throwing its biggest car-free Halloween party yet, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani announcing that 160 streets and plazas across all five boroughs will shut out traffic this October for trick-or-treating, games, and live entertainment. The Department of Transportation says it plans to hand out 75,000 pieces of candy as part of the expanded Trick-or-Streets program, which now dwarfs previous years' efforts.
“We're opening up 160 streets and plazas for trick-or-treating, games, music and a whole lot of fun,” Mamdani said, according to PIX11. The mayor and DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn unveiled the record-setting lineup this week, and per Patch, activities will include trick-or-treating, face painting, live entertainment and games spread across the car-free spaces through October.
Mamdani said, “New York City does Halloween like nowhere else,” adding that the city is giving New Yorkers “a better, spookier time than ever before,” according to WABC-TV New York.
A Program That Keeps Growing
This year's 160 locations represent a sharp jump from recent Halloweens. The DOT kicked off nearly 100 Open Streets, plazas and other corridors for the holiday in 2024, the station's report notes, while the 2025 program reached more than 137 locations across the five boroughs — itself a record at the time. That earlier version marked the fourth year of the program and ran from Oct. 17 through Oct. 31, with 15 premier locations receiving DOT-produced programming.
Beyond the street closures, the city is partnering with Street Lab to hold events outside nine public schools, and the Municipal Art Society of New York will offer free guided walking tours exploring neighborhood history, architecture and public spaces. Kids attending the various celebrations can expect face painting, live entertainment, games and those walking tours woven throughout the month's festivities.
Borough-By-Borough Signature Events
Each borough gets its own headline celebration in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Brooklyn kicks things off at Hillel Plaza on Thursday, Oct. 22, from 2 to 6 p.m., followed by Staten Island's event at the Water Street Open Street on Saturday, Oct. 24, from noon to 5 p.m.
Queens follows with its signature gathering at the Austin Street Open Street on Sunday, Oct. 25, though sources disagree on when it wraps up — Patch lists the event running from 2 to 5 p.m., while PIX11 reports it extending to 7 p.m. Manhattan's celebration takes over the Canal Open Street and Division Plaza on Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 3 to 7 p.m., and the Bronx closes out the borough tour on Halloween itself, Saturday, Oct. 31, at James Baldwin Plaza from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
With the citywide rollout stretching across October, the administration is betting that more car-free space translates into a bigger, safer Halloween experience for families navigating five boroughs' worth of costumes, candy and crowds.
