Penn State football fans will face changes this Saturday when the university rolls out its new parking procedure that divides tailgaters into four separate zones.
Every zone has its own suggested route that drivers should take to enter the lots. If fans take the wrong route, they will be rerouted.
Penn State Alumni Association Capital Area Chapter board member Gerald Stiver is one of the fans who plans to test the traffic Saturday when the team takes on Idaho at Beaver Stadium at 3:30 pm.
The university has printed specific directions to the lots on the back of the parking passes. University police also tell FOX43 they have teamed up with PennDOT to navigate traffic and PennDOT has featured the routes on their 511PA website to inform drivers of the traffic. Find that link here.
Fans can also utilize the navigation system Waze to find direct routes to their lots.
"We're going to take a little longer the first few games to just answer everybody's questions," said Assistant Chief Bill Moerschbacher of the University Police.
Penn State has also sent ticketholders reminder emails about the parking changes.
"In addition to that we put a lot of signage out further than we normally have with PennDOT's assistance," said Moerschbacher.
FOX43 has posted a game day guide if you are headed to Happy Valley here.
Meantime, PennDOT has released the following travel alerts:
From the Harrisburg area:
· On Route 22 in Juniata County, traffic is restricted to one lane in each direction about a mile east of the Arch Rock interchange. This zone also features a 12-foot width restriction.
· On Route 322/22 in the Burnham area west of Lewistown in Mifflin County, westbound traffic is restricted to one lane. There are two lanes currently open for eastbound traffic, however, beginning September 3, the eastbound passing lane will be closed.
· On Route 322 from the Mifflin/Centre County line through the village of Potters Mills, traffic is restricted to one lane in each direction. Travel delays are likely. This zone also features 12-foot and 14-foot width restrictions.
From the Johnstown area:
· On U.S. 22, there are lane restrictions (one in each direction) in the Armaugh area from 2 miles west of the Route 56 interchange to a half mile east of the Route 403 interchange. This zone also features a 10-foot width restriction.
From the Lock Haven area:
· On Route 26, there is a traffic signal at the end of the I-80 westbound off-ramp at the Bellefonte/161 exit. This traffic pattern should alleviate major congestion and back-ups on I-80 westbound approaching the Bellefonte exit.
From western PA:
· On I-80 eastbound, there is bridge work with lane restrictions between DuBois/mile-marker 97 to east of DuBois/mile-marker 101. There are also 12-foot width restrictions. Speed reduced to 55 mph in these work zones. Please allow for extra travel time.
· On I-80 eastbound and westbound, there is bridge work with lane shifts near mile-marker 125 in Clearfield County. This zone has no width restrictions.
In State College:
· On Atherton Street (Business Route 322) there will be no additional lane closures in place Friday, August 30; Saturday, August 31; Sunday, September 1; and Monday, September 2
due to the PSU/Idaho home football game and the observance of the Labor Day holiday. Two lanes will remain open in each direction to and from the University.
· On North Atherton Street, bridge repair work on a bridge spanning I-99 features a lane restriction for one-way, westbound traffic.
