Major road opens in time for Saturday’s UT-Arkansas State game

Fans traveling to the Tennessee football game on Saturday got good news Tuesday with the announcement James White Parkway will reopen this week.

The Tennessee Volunteers' game Saturday against Arkansas State kicks off at 7 p.m. Eastern time. It will be broadcast on the Vol Network and VideoSeat pay-per-view.

James White Parkway, which connects Interstate 40 to Neyland Drive, opens Friday and will be available to fans driving to campus or downtown on Saturday. The parkway has been closed since December.

Before the game, fans can access James White Parkway from both eastbound and westbound I-40.

After the game, fans wanting to go westbound on I-40 must use Hall of Fame Drive because there is no entrance ramp from James White Parkway. Motorists wanting to go eastbound on I-40 may use the parkway.

Because of traffic concerns, fans driving to the game always should plan to arrive early. The stadium gates open two hours before kickoff.

Only fans with permits can park on campus. UT encourages fans to use shuttle buses from the Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum and the UT Agriculture campus.

The university also reminds fans of the ban on smoking inside the gates of Neyland Stadium because of a new state law. And, as always, no one inside the gates will be allowed to leave and then be readmitted.

Fans should remember that all items, including purses, are subject to search at the gates. Certain items remain prohibited inside the stadium, and those items cannot be stored at any stadium gate.

Prohibited items include the following:

• alcoholic beverages, cans, bottles or coolers

• radios without headphones

• open umbrellas

• video cameras

• stadium seats with arms

• large bags or parcels, including backpacks and large purses

• weapons of any kind, including pocketknives

Fans are allowed to bring the following items inside the stadium:

• cushions and seats without arms

• diaper bags that accompany infants

• small cameras, pagers, cell phones and binoculars

For those driving on campus, Peyton Manning Pass, Middle and Lower Drives, Estabrook Drive and Phillip Fulmer Way from Middle Drive to Tee Martin Drive will be closed 30 minutes before kickoff. Directional parking will be used in Area 9 and Lots 4, 5A and 5B.

With the renovation of the Glocker Business Administration Building, traffic on Andy Holt Avenue between Volunteer Boulevard and Phillip Fulmer Way will be two-way before the game and westbound only after the game.

Due to construction, sidewalks on the north side of Andy Holt Avenue and the east side of Volunteer Boulevard at Glocker have been closed. Also, the sidewalk is closed on the east side of Lake Loudoun Boulevard at the corner of Neyland Drive due to the Pratt Pavilion construction beside Thompson-Boling Arena.

Solicitation near stadium gates and along Phillip Fulmer Way is prohibited.

The traditional Vol Walk from Gibbs Hall to the stadium starts at 4:45 p.m., and the Pride of the Southland marching band leaves the music building at 5:20 p.m.

Ag Day on the UT Agriculture campus takes place from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

A no-fly zone extends over the stadium from one hour before the game until one hour after it ends, prohibiting flights within a 3-nautical-mile radius and lower than 3,000-feet altitude, except as authorized by air traffic control.

For more information on traveling to Knoxville, visit the Tennessee Department of Transportation Web site at http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/smartfix/jwp/closures.asp.