KNOXVILLE — Football fans attending Saturday’s University of Tennessee game against Fresno State will see changes in traffic patterns, personal safety reminders, and new information booths on campus.
Steve Richards, director of the UT Center for Transportation Research, said the new parking garage at the corner of Cumberland Avenue and 11th Street will help move more cars away from the immediate vicinity of Neyland Stadium.
“Game-day parking at the garage is reserved for donors to the university’s athletic department, but those cars being in the garage will increase unreserved space available elsewhere on campus,” Richards said.
“To accommodate the traffic leaving the garage after the game, 11th Street will be one-way northbound toward the interstate.”
Another traffic bottleneck expected to be eased this year is the intersection of Kingston Pike and Lyons View Pike, he said.
“There’s been an ongoing construction zone there for the last several months,” Richards said. “The intent is to have the west-bound Lyons View linkage reopened in time for the game.”
Interstates 40 and 640 through Knoxville should have all lanes of traffic open by game time Saturday, Richards said.
To provide an extra measure of stadium security, Phillip Fulmer Way will be closed 30 minutes prior to kickoff, and no cars will be allowed to drive past the stadium until after the game is finished.
Shuttle buses from Knoxville Area Transit will operate from the Civic Coliseum parking garage and the Old City before and after the game, with a round-trip cost of $4 per person. A park-and-ride shuttle also will run from Campbell Station Road in Farragut for $10 round-trip.
Public safety will be high on the list of concerns of emergency officials at the stadium.
“Since kickoff is at 3 p.m., we’re expecting the game to be very hot and humid,” Richards said.
“The Knoxville Fire Department and Emergency Medical Service want to remind everyone that they need to be prepared for the heat, dress appropriately and drink plenty of non-alcoholic liquids if they’ll be in the stadium.”
This year the UT Athletic Department will operate four information booths around campus, helping fans find parking lots and answering questions. Richards says three of the booths will be near the stadium and the fourth will be at Volunteer Village, a commercial exhibit area located next to the humanities and social sciences building.