With a million fans expected at Friday's Celtics parade, officials say to plan ahead

It will be hard to outdo the celebrations outside TD Garden that crept well into the early hours of Tuesday morning after the Celtics beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 to win the NBA Finals. But Boston will do its best to top that afterparty Friday when the Celtics get their long-awaited victory parade.

Speaking at a press conference outside Boston City Hall on Tuesday, city officials laid out the plans for the festivities, which will begin at 11 a.m. on Friday.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu expressed gratitude to the team for its accomplishments.

“As a mom, it’s been extremely meaningful for me to watch with my two boys how this team has gone about achieving this accomplishment,” she said. “Day to day, throughout the entire season, the teamwork, resilience, character that they’ve demonstrated in supporting each other, coming together, game after game. But also really meaningfully off the court.”

Wu said there will be street closures along the parade route, which will run from TD Garden to the Back Bay, starting at 9 a.m. on Friday. And, she said, officials expect over a million people.

Jascha Franklin-Hodge, Boston’s Chief of Streets, made a simple plea to people hoping to see the parade.

“Traffic will be plentiful and parking will be scarce,” he said. “So, whether you’re going to work or coming in for the parade, we cannot say this strongly enough: please take public transportation into Boston on Friday.”

MBTA general manager Phillip Eng said there are no planned subway closures Friday and that there will essentially be peak service from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“However, I must emphasize the importance of planning ahead and purchasing round trip fares in advance to avoid long lines at the fare vending machines,” he said.

For Celtics president Rich Gotham, Monday was a late night. He told reporters at Tuesday’s press conference that he left TD Garden at 5:30 in the morning following the Celtics Game 5 victory.

Now, he’s looking forward to the long-awaited duck boats.

“We always say we’re in the joy business,” Gotham said. “And we’re gonna get the opportunity to share some of that joy with our fans during the rolling rally on Friday.”