PHOTO: Courtesy of WLUK
BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The NFL estimates close to a quarter of a million people will be in Titletown for the NFL Draft.
Whether those people are traveling from outside the state or are local, everyone will have to navigate their way to and from the event.
It was late March when a portion of Oneida Street was closed so construction of the draft stage could get underway. And starting Sunday, eastbound lanes of Lombardi Avenue, from Military Avenue to Holmgren Way, will close too.
The closures are all part of the bigger plan to safely get visitors in and out of the draft footprint.
With just two weeks to go until the draft, traffic plans that have been months in the making are starting to come to fruition. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is planning to shut down all construction projects on major roadways during draft week.
“No lane closures, no work on any of those major freeways. We’re trying to make sure we have all existing lanes on those major freeway arterials open for ingress, egress,” said Joshua Falk, a WisDOT traffic engineer.
The Brown County Highway Department presented its traffic flow report to the county’s Traffic Safety Commission Tuesday morning.
According to Brown County Highway Commissioner Chris Hardy, “I feel good. It’s just a matter now of getting the message out. Letting the people know how to get there, how to get home, what the traffic pattern is going to look like.”
The county teamed up with Wisconsin DOT officials, along with local law enforcement, to identify routes and exits for people to use to get to and from the draft.
Hardy said, “From the south, we’re wanting them to use Ashland, obviously. They can also use Oneida. They can use Lombardi. If they’re coming from 43, they want to use 172. They could also go north around the upper end of the city and go in at Lombardi or Mason Street.”
However, Lombardi Avenue is closing its eastbound lanes this coming weekend, meaning only westbound traffic will be able to travel in front of the stadium. The traffic patterns will be changing for the draft.
People coming to the draft will be able to get off I-41 at Lombardi Avenue and head towards the stadium up to Military Avenue. Leaving the draft, they won’t be ale to get on the highway at Lombardi.
Instead, people will have to to find a route that takes them one exit north or south before they can hop back on the highway.
“Don’t plan on using Lombardi to get out. You can get in on Lombardi, but not out — so that’s probably the biggest message,” added Hardy.
Thursday and Friday of draft week are expected to be the busiest on the roads. DOT officials offered one last piece of advice.
“Making sure we have patience on the roadways on those Thursday and Friday [evening] peaks is going to be critical,” said Falk.
The DOT and Brown County Highway Department stress the importance of downloading the NFL One Pass app. It will have information about road closures, traffic patterns, parking and more, and can help people plan their trip and offer advice on what exits to take.
The Discover Green Bay website will also have similar information.
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