ATLANTA FORECAST
Friday: High: 60
Friday night: Low: 39
Saturday: High: 62
» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.
Atlanta has warmed nearly 30 degrees since Friday morning.
The city started the day in the mid-30s but has reached 62 degrees, according to Channel 2 Action News. That was two degrees warmer than the predicted high.
As the evening commute hits full steam, traffic is stifling travel on most interstates, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.
At least one left lane of I-20 West near Panola Road is blocked by a crash in DeKalb County, according to the Traffic Center.
In Gwinnett County, three right lanes of I-85 South near Jimmy Carter Boulevard are blocked because of a car fire, according to the Traffic Center. Delays span back to Pleasant Hill Road.
Several downtown streets have been closed all week in preparation for the Super Bowl, but Friday was the first day a major artery through the city was shut down.
Peachtree Street was closed between Ponce de Leon Avenue and Fifth Street at 1 a.m. to give crews time to ready the Fox Theatre for Saturday night’s NFL Honors program. The road is scheduled to be shut down through 5 p.m. Sunday.
RELATED: SUPER BOWL TRAFFIC: Big game prep claims major downtown Atlanta street
Juniper Street, Piedmont Avenue and Spring Street are the best alternates, according to the Traffic Center.
Martin Luther King Jr. Drive between Northside Drive and Centennial Olympic Park Drive, and Andrew Young International Boulevard between Marietta Street and Centennial Olympic Park Drive are closed until Feb. 7. Baker Street between Centennial Olympic Park Drive and Luckie Street is closed until Feb. 8.
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Mitchell Street between Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Elliot Street, and Mangum Street between Markham and Foundry streets will also be closed until Feb. 7.
One southbound lane of Northside Drive is closed until Saturday while contractors work to build a security fence around Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
MORE: Some road closures already in place, more to come
On Saturday, Northside Drive between Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive will be closed. Northside is scheduled to reopen Tuesday.
And in Sandy Springs, crews repaired a water main break at Dunwoody Place and Hope Road, but one lane remains closed.
The warmup in temps comes just in time for Super Bowl weekend.
“We’ve got a lot of fans from Boston coming down here looking for some warmer weather, and they are going to get it,” Channel 2 meteorologist Brian Monahan said. “We’ve seen some of the coldest weather this season here over the last couple of days. That’s gone, that’s done with. The weekend, it looks good.”
Monahan said Friday was one of those days when kids went to the bus stop dressed for winter but had to shed a few layers before heading home.
“With the clouds and the sun mix, we’re looking great,” Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton said. “Your afternoon temperatures touching that 60-degree mark with partly cloudy skies.”
North Georgia will wake up Saturday morning to projected lows in the upper 30s. There is a 30 percent chance of showers in the afternoon as a system moves into the state, according to Channel 2. The 30 percent chance carries over into Sunday morning.
“For Saturday and Sunday the models are trending a little more on the drier side,” Minton said. “So rain chances are fairly low and we should be mainly dry when we head into the evening time, when the Super Bowl is going on, but there could be some isolated showers early on.”
MORE: SUPER BOWL WEATHER: Chance of showers, big warmup before the game
Temps will be nowhere near freezing Sunday morning, so Monahan said there is no threat of winter weather. Atlanta won’t get a repeat of the last time it hosted the big game in 2000, when two ice storms crippled parts of the city and complicated travel for visiting NFL teams and fans.
ALSO: Ice Bowl: Things to know about the Atlanta Super Bowl ice storm in 2000
“Milder air (is) pushing in, and the wind direction, it’s going to be pushing in from the Pacific Ocean,” he said. “That Pacific air, that means a big warming trend on the way.”
Atlanta has a projected high of 59 degrees for Sunday, then Monahan said the temperature will be 70 degrees by Tuesday. Above-average temps are expected for the second week of February.
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