Atlanta’s holiday weekend will offer clowns, cold and construction

The good news is, there will be fewer lane closures along I-285 for sign structure work this weekend. The bad news is, there are still a couple of spots around town where sign and bridge work could cause delays.

Here’s what you need to know to navigate the work zones and avoid traffic bottlenecks:

Interstate 20 will be this weekend’s hot spot

Bridge joint repairs will close three westbound lanes of I-20 between the Downtown Connector and Lee Street, along with two eastbound lanes from Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to Joseph Lowery Boulevard and between Fulton Industrial Boulevard and I-285, starting at 9 p.m. Friday and continuing through 5 a.m. Monday.

Sign structure work on the top-end Perimeter will shut down two westbound lanes of I-285 between Northlake Parkway and Chamblee Tucker Road and one eastbound lane closure between New Northside Drive and Lavista Road, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Friday and continuing through 5 a.m. Monday.

Other sign work will close one northbound and one southbound lane of I-75 between Delk Road and the South Marietta Parkway from 7:30 a.m. Saturday through 5:30 p.m. Sunday.

Dry weekend on tap, with colder temps by Sunday

All of the planned roadwork is weather-permitting, but Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton is forecasting sunny skies through Sunday, so rain won’t be an issue for road crews.

Saturday’s morning low will be in the upper 20s, followed by afternoon highs in the mid-50s.

Sunday will be much colder, Minton said, with highs only climbing to around 37 after starting the day in the low 20s.

Things could get interesting starting on Monday, which is the President’s Day holiday for banks and government workers. That’s when forecasters expect rain to move into north Georgia, and temperatures could be cold enough for the rain to mix with, or change to snow, at times before ending on Wednesday.

Minton is predicting a high Monday of only 38 after a morning low of 23.

Click here for the full forecast and updates throughout the weekend on the developing chance for snow early next week.

If you can’t find a clown in this town, you’re not trying

The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus has eight shows scheduled this weekend at Philips Arena. The circus then moves to the Gwinnett Arena for shows Feb. 19 through March 1. Meanwhile a few miles to the south, the Atlanta-based UniverSoul Circus has set up camp through March 1 in the Green Lot at Turner Field.

Other events this weekend include the Cheersport Nationals cheerleading competition Friday through Sunday at the Georgia World Congress Center.