While golfers love a long drive down the fairway, attendees of the U.S. Open will not want to miss any action due to a long drive on the freeway.

With one of professional golf’s most prestigious championship tournaments teeing off at Chambers Bay in University Place next week, the Washington State Department of Transportation reminds drivers they may encounter occasional higher-than-normal travel times during morning and afternoon commutes.

To better accommodate expected high volumes of fans and tourists, shuttle-bus services will be available to transport spectators to and from Chambers Bay. The shuttle-bus services are provided by organizers of the US Open. Drivers may encounter occasional backups at interchanges leading to two shuttle-bus stations:

• Interstate 5 on- and off-ramps at Bridgeport Way Southwest in Lakewood.
• State Route 512 on- and off-ramps at Meridian Avenue East (near the Washington State Fair) in Puyallup.

In addition, drivers will begin to see informational signs installed along state highways throughout Pierce and King counties that direct spectators to two parking areas. The signs are being funded, installed and maintained by the organizers of the US Open.

“Since many spectators will arrive by shuttle bus, we’re not anticipating large I-5 traffic backups,” said WSDOT Olympic Region Freeway Operations Manager Tony Leingang. “At the same time, golf fans and travelers can stay on par by planning ahead for more time to reach their destinations.”

Keeping traffic moving

While the top-flight pros are playing through, WSDOT will take a number of measures to help keep traffic moving:

• WSDOT Incident Response Teams will patrol I-5 to help clear stalled vehicles and minor collisions.
• WSDOT’s regional Traffic Management Center will monitor traffic and identify issues using dozens of freeway cameras.
• New ramp meters between State Route 510 and State Route 512 are designed to ease I-5 traffic congestion.

Driver tools

WSDOT also offers a set of tools to keep drivers informed:

• WSDOT travel alerts web page.
• WSDOT driver information is available for mobile devices .
• Specialized email alerts .
• Social media: Twitter and Facebook .
• Drivers can also call 511, the 24-hour, traveler-information line.

On the road

• Overhead and roadside electronic signs will provide information about blocking incidents.
• WSDOT advises drivers to program its highway advisory radio station, found at 530 AM and 1610 AM on the dial.