Weekend traffic: Full closures on the Crosstown and I-35E, soccer, art fairs and McCartney concert

Southwest metro drivers already dealing with the long-running closure of northbound Hwy. 169 from I-494 to Bren Road in Minnetonka will find another obstacle in place from late Friday night until early Monday. The Crosstown will be closed in both direction at the Hwy. 169 interchange. Access to Hwy. 212 will also be affected

East metro motorists will find it more difficult getting into downtown St. Paul. The southbound lanes of I-35E will be closed between Hwy. 36 and I-94.

Three art fairs in Minneapolis will bring extra traffic to the Uptown, Powderhorn Park and Loring Park areas while a big soccer match between Manchester City and Olympiacos at TCF Bank Stadium will make things busy on the University of Minnesota campus with 30,000 fans expected.

Oh yeah, Sir Paul McCartney holds court with a concert at Target Field on Saturday night. Metro Transit will run extra Northstar trains and SouthWest Transit also will offer express bus service to the big show.

Heading to the cabin and traveling on I-90 or I-94? Keep the speeds down as you will find an extra police presence on both freeways as the I-90/94 Challenge runs Friday through Monday.

Here is an advisory from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for those heading to the land of cheese: Heavy traffic and potential delays across the state this weekend. Major statewide events, heavy travel, construction zones may cause backups

Crosstown closure

Here is the detour: Drivers on eastbound Hwy 62 will sent southbound on Hwy 169, then east on I-494 and north on Hwy. 100. Westbound Hwy 62 traffic will be detoured to northbound Hwy 169, westbound I-394 and southbound Hwy 169. The ramp from westbound Hwy 62 to northbound Hwy 169 will temporarily reopen for the weekend detour.

Hwy. 169 closure

We've had this one in place for a little over a week, but incase you are coming into town for any of the above events, here's your reminder: The northbound lanes are closed from I-494 to Bren Road. Detour: Westbound I-494 to eastbound I-394 or eastbound I-494 to northbound Hwy. 100, then west on I-394.

Reconstruction of the bridge deck is part of a larger construction project on Hwy 169 that keep the northbound lanes closed until October.

I-35E in St. Paul

In association with the southbound closure, at 9 p.m. the following ramps will close:

Detour: This one will take you well out of your way. MnDOT is directing motorists to eastbound Hwy. 36 to southbound 694, then east on I-94 into downtown St. Paul.

Remember that the ramp from westbound I-94 to northbound I-35E is closed for another three weeks. Here is a link to all the other closures in the area, all due to the upgrades and installation of a MnPASS lane on I-35E between downtown St. Paul and Little Canada Road.

Both directions of Brooklyn Blvd. remain closed at Hwy. 100 in Brooklyn Center as work on the new overpass continues. Ramps to and from Hwy. 100 will remain open. The project will last until October.

For another two months, the northbound lanes are under construction from Medtronic Pkwy. to County Road 10. Detour: West on I-694, north on I-35W and west on Hwy. 10.

A repaving project will have Hwy. 61 bogged down between White Bear Avenue and north of Hwy. 96 until fall. It's one lane in each direction.

I-494 at the Wakota Bridge

This one could cause a few issues for motorists. Two eastbound lanes between Hardman Avenue and Maxwell Avenue in the South St. Paul and Newport area could squeeze traffic from 7 p.m. Friday until 5 a.m. Monday. The entrance ramp from Hardman Ave to eastbound I-494 and the exit ramp from eastbound I-494 to Maxwell Ave will be closed during the repaving. This should be the last weekend for this disruption.

Watch out for lane closures and traffic backups on Hwy. 55 between the east and west junctions of Hwy. 149. Also, the left lane of Hwy. 149 between I-494 and Hwy. 55 is closed. If rush hour is any indication, this is an area you might want to avoid, especially on Friday evening and Sunday evening. Hwy. 3 or 61 might work out much better.

I-35W in Bloomington

I-94 near Rogers

Alternating lane closures and slow downs can be expected on I-94 between Rogers and St. Michael. A freeway expansion project is underway. That is impacting traffic from Hwy. 101 to Hwy. 241.

Century Avenue

Lane restrictions and the ramp from southbound Century Avenue to eastbound I-694 are in place in White Bear Lake. Use a detour to Hwy. 36 to head east.

Uptown Art Fair

A number of Metro Transit bus routes that pass through the area of Lake Street and Hennepin Avenue will be on detour from 8:30 am on Friday through 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The agency is offering free rides to the fete.

Expect some congestion on Hennepin Avenue and on streets surrounding the Loring Park Art Fair and around Powerhorn Park where artists will be showing off their wares. Chicago and Bloomington Avenues and 35th Street will be the most affected.

Minneapolis Parkways

The Miracle Kids Triathlon will keep traffic off Lake Nokomis Parkway from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday while over at Lake Calhoun the 811 Run and Walk takes place from 8 a.m. to noon.