UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — When Penn State football opens the 2019 campaign against Idaho on Aug. 31 at Beaver Stadium, fans will notice several updates to their game day experience for the 2019 season, including a new traffic pattern and improvements to several grass parking lots.

In an effort to address traffic and parking challenges on football game days, Penn State Athletics announced last November several changes to traffic and parking for the 2019 season that are designed to improve safety and traffic flow. These changes are being implemented after evaluation of the operation by the University with a national consultant, SP+.

Once the one-way traffic pattern begins on game day, fans will be required to travel to their specific Beaver Stadium lot from one of four traffic zones that have been created (North, South, East and West). All parking permits have zone- and lot-specific driving direction instructions.

Prior to arrival at Beaver Stadium, fans are asked to know their route and parking location, which is on the back of their parking permit. Fans are required to display their parking permit from their rearview mirror as they enter the traffic pattern and continue to display the permit once parked. Cars are sorted in traffic by University Police to lanes leading to appropriate lots and patrons should approach their parking lot based on their traffic zone.

Fans that attempt to access their parking lot via the incorrect traffic zone once the one-way traffic pattern begins will be re-routed to the correct zone, delaying the arrival time to their parking lot.

Penn State has worked with Waze to develop directional tools to assist fans in being sure they run their route as they head to games. Fans can enter their lot number into the Waze app and will be instructed on the appropriate route to run based on the new traffic pattern. Waze instructions also will be available via the Penn State Athletics app.

For full traffic pattern instructions and the 2019 Beaver Stadium parking map, visit gopsusports.com.

One-way traffic pattern start times

In February, Intercollegiate Athletics announced when the one-way traffic patterns will begin for the 2019 football season:

Noon kickoff: The one-way traffic pattern will begin at 8:30 a.m. Beaver Stadium parking lots will open at 7 a.m., providing fans with a 90-minute window to access their parking lot via any route.

All other kickoff times: The one-way traffic pattern will begin four hours prior to kickoff.

• 3:30 p.m. kickoff: The one-way traffic pattern will begin at 11:30 a.m.
• 7 p.m. kickoff: The one-way traffic pattern will begin at 3 p.m.
• 8 p.m. kickoff: The one-way traffic pattern will begin at 4 p.m.

Postgame one-way traffic pattern in effect for 90 minutes

University Police has indicated to Intercollegiate Athletics that the vast majority of pedestrian traffic typically clears the Beaver Stadium area approximately 90 minutes after a game ends. The outbound, one-way traffic pattern will be in effect from the end of the contest for approximately 90 minutes, and fans will be required to leave their lot via the directions for their specific traffic zone. During the vast majority of the game, there is a normal traffic pattern around Beaver Stadium.

Once the one-way outbound traffic pattern ends (approximately 90 minutes after the game), fans will be able to exit their lot and leave the stadium vicinity via any route.

Improvements set for several grass parking lots

Penn State Athletics restored and invested in upgrades to several grass parking lots it controls that will improve the parkability if grass lots become saturated. In other lots, gravel drive aisles were installed to also improve the parkability. More than 3,900 grass parking spaces, including Lot 43 (former Blue RV), will be positively impacted by the improvements.

The improvements include:

• Penn State Athletics invested in a drive aisle reinforcement product in two lots to reduce the amount of rutting that occurs in the drive aisles. The reinforcement product was placed in Lot 17 near the Pennsylvania State University sign and in the grass areas of Lot 18.
• Gravel drive aisles were installed in sections of two lots (Lot 31 and 43) to reduce rutting during wet conditions.

Fans are encouraged to visit Game Day Central for all information as it relates to Penn State football game day traffic, parking, Beaver Stadium's clear bag policy and information on the matchup.

To learn more about game day enhancements at Beaver Stadium for the 2019 season, visit gopsusports.com.