Buenos Aires closes it's roads for road rally

On 30 December 2008 several major streets in Buenos Aires were closed to prepare for the Dakar road rally, an international tour of amateur drivers and motorcyclists. Street closures include two side streets of avenida 9 de Julio and avenida Sarmiento, between Plaza Italia and avenida del Libertador. Since the early hours of 30 December, Palermo zone and downtown have experienced heavy congestion and delays. The roads will remain closed until the tour ends on 4 January 2009 at 2000 local time (2200 UTC). On 2 January 2009 additional roads will be either partially or fully closed to accommodate the rally, from 1600 to 2400 local time (1800 to 0200 UTC). These roads include Bartolome Mitre, Diagonal Norte, Bolivar, Avenida de Mayo, Rivadavia, Callao, Libertador and Figueroa Alcorta.