Forecasters are predicting smooth sailing for outdoor activities Saturday and Sunday, but traffic will be anything but smooth on numerous stretches of metro Atlanta interstates where weekend roadwork is planned.
Here’s what you need to know to avoid the backups:
Work planned on nearly all metro interstates
Two southbound lanes of I-285 will be closed all weekend between South Cobb Drive and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, while two northbound lanes will be shut down from I-20 to South Atlanta Road.
Other weekend-long Perimeter closures include one lane of I-285 in each direction at I-85 in Spaghetti Junction and one northbound lane of I-285 from Memorial Drive to Northlake Parkway, while two northbound lanes of I-285 at Northlake Parkway will be shut down from 7:30 p.m. Friday through 7 a.m. Saturday.
Work on the I-75 Express Lanes project will close one lane of I-575 northbound from Barrett Parkway to Chastain Road from 9 p.m. Friday through 10 a.m. Saturday, while two southbound lanes of I-75 will be closed in the area of the Ga. 120 Loop from 9 p.m. Friday through 7 a.m. Saturday.
On the west side, two westbound lanes of I-20 will be closed from Langhorn Street to Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, while east of town in Rockdale County, one lane of I-20 will be closed in each direction between Almon Road and the Newton County line.
On I-85, one northbound lane will be closed between Jimmy Carter Boulevard and Indian Trail Road from 10 p.m. Friday through 9 p.m. Saturday.
» Traffic updates throughout the weekend from the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center
Weekend will be mostly sunny and warm
Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton is predicting mostly sunny skies through Sunday, with only a 10 percent chance of an isolated shower each day.
Afternoon highs will be in the mid-80s Friday and upper 80s Saturday and Sunday, with morning lows in the upper 60s to low 70s.
The chance of rain increases to 30 percent Monday and 40 percent Tuesday, Minton said.
» Check the full forecast and track changes
NKOTB, Fox Theatre Block Party, Summerfest top weekend events calendar
The Atlanta Braves play the Pittsburgh Pirates Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday afternoon at Turner Field, and the Gwinnett Braves take on the Durham Bulls in a weekend series at Coolray Field.
Philips Arena hosts a concert Saturday night by New Kids on the Block, TLC and Nelly, while the Atlanta Dream plays Connecticut Sunday afternoon at the arena.
The Virginia-Highland Summerfest will be held Saturday and Sunday along Virginia Avenue between North Highland Avenue and Park Drive.
Peachtree Street and Ponce de Leon Avenue will be shut down near the Fox Theatre Sunday for the “Fox Rock the Block Party” celebrating the theater’s 85th anniversary.
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