GRIDLOCK SAM

ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING RULES ARE IN EFFECT FRIDAY AND SATURDAY WEEKEND TRAFFIC OUTLOOK

In the Battery Tunnel, one tube will close 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. One lane will remain open in each direction in the other tunnel. Take the Brooklyn or

Manhattan bridges instead. June is Pride month, and this weekend is packed with events: a kickoff rally at Pier 26 will take place 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday. Thousands of people will cross the West Side Highway at Laight St. during rush hour, and again for Teaze 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday. Pridefest will close Hudson Square between Abingdon

Square and W. 14th St. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

The Pride parade runs from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, but streets along its route will be blocked off from the early morning into the evening. Unless you're going to watch the parade, stay away from Fifth

Ave. between 41st and 8th Sts. The postparade festival will close Hudson St. between Bethune and W. 14th St. and W. 13th St. between Ninth Ave. and W. Fourth St. in the afternoon and evening. The Avenue of the Americas Summer Festival will close Sixth Ave. between

42nd and 56th Sts. 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday.

The Governeur Parent's Association Parade will close Madison Ave. between

104th and 116th Sts. noon to 3 p.m. Saturday.

The Vanderbilt YMCA Festival will close Lexington Ave. between 42nd and

53rd Sts. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. The Flatbush Avenue Festival will close Flatbush Ave. between Parkside Ave. and

Cortelyou Road noon to 6 p.m. Sunday.

From the mailbag: Dear Gridlock Sam,

On a Saturday, if I'm going to the Meadowlands from the north shore of Long Island, am I better off going through the tunnels of Manhattan or around via

GWB?

Tim, Long Island Dear Tim,

The GWB is your best bet. You could take the LIE either to the Whitestone or Throgs Neck, or to the GCP and onto the

RFK. In both situations, you're avoiding the city bridges. Weekend-long closures like this weekend's in the Battery Tunnel cause slowdowns on the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges. Plus, there's a big parade or festival almost every Saturday in the summer, so

the GWB is good to avoid Midtown snarls.

Gridlock Sam