MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Nearly 20,000 people could be filing into the Morgantown area for a variety of events this weekend.
Monongalia County Sheriff Todd Forbes said the NCAA Women’s Basketball Regional round of play is expected to draw at least 10,000 people, mainly centered around Hope Coliseum. In the Mylan Park area, the Pennsylvania YMCA State Meet will be held at the Peak Health Aquatic Center, a WVU Track Meet at the Track Complex, and Jurassic Quest at the Hazel & J.W. Ruby Community Center. Also, over at Kendrick Family Ball Park, the Mountaineer men’s baseball team started a three-game series with BYU Thursday.
“All within about a one square mile in our county,” Forbes said. “We’re going to figure out a good strategy to keep the traffic moving, but everybody needs to really be patient this weekend.”
This will be in addition to the normal pass through, recreational, and commercial traffic normally using I-79 and I-68. One small incident could create a catastrophic traffic situation with these anticipated traffic volumes, Forbes said.
“Steer clear of the Chaplin Road/Mylan Park area unless you have to be there; be patient with each other and give yourself extra time to get there,” Forbes said.
Traffic going to Mylan Park via I-79 has historically had difficulty making the right turn at the bottom of the exit ramp. During normal peak times of travel, ramp traffic can spill into the live lanes of I-79, creating an additional hazard.
“When Exit 155 gets backed up, it can go all the way back to the Westover Exit or beyond,” Forbes said. “If there are any kind of problems at all, we’ll have a real backup and a real delay for people trying to get places, and that’s what we’re trying to avoid.”
The weather forecast shows showers and maybe a thunderstorm possible Friday that could limit visibility. Visibility will improve with the weather Saturday into Sunday, but Forbes reminds travelers to watch for police officers directing traffic in intersections in the area.
“Give some space between you and the car in front of you and pay a little more attention to what’s going on because we don’t want to have a bunch of accidents Saturday,” Forbes said.
The large influx of visitors and expected traffic congestion could force some to change routines. Sheriff Forbes, delaying your routine could save time and prevent some traffic headaches.
“We need to ask citizens to have patience, use caution, and maybe go to Walmart on Sunday instead of Saturday,” Forbes said.