Colorado State University Ram Football Fans are Encouraged to Leave Early for Games at Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins and to be Patient with Traffic Delays this Fall Season.

Colorado State University Ram football fans are encouraged to leave early for games at Hughes Stadium in Fort Collins and to be patient with traffic delays this fall season.

Construction projects throughout the city are limiting east-west access from Interstate 25 to Hughes Stadium, located on Overland Trail. University police are urging fans to take Prospect Road or Harmony Road to the stadium, and to be prepared for delays due to heavy traffic before and after the games. Mulberry Street will be open, but construction at Lemay Avenue will slow traffic.

Construction projects on Timberline Road will effectively close the road to game traffic, said Capt. Bob Chaffee of the university’s police department.

"This season, football fans will see more traffic delays with the heavy amount of road construction going on throughout Fort Collins," Chaffee said. "We’re strongly urging people to leave earlier than normal to make sure they don’t miss opening kickoffs."

Motorists arriving from the south are asked to take Harmony Road to Shields Street, then turn west onto Drake and enter the Hughes parking lot at Gate 4 to the south of the stadium. Motorists should expect some delays on Drake at the Taft Hill Road intersection – traffic will be allowed through the intersection but speeds will be slow.

Those coming from the north should use Gates 1 and 2, located off Overland Trail directly east of the stadium.

Because of construction projects at Horsetooth Reservoir, County Road 42C and S. Centennial Drive will be closed on game days to all traffic except local residents.

Chaffee said that the Homecoming game against San Diego State on Sept. 22 might generate especially heavy traffic, and that fans should plan accordingly. The game against Air Force on Thursday, Nov. 8, also may tie up traffic because the 5:30 p.m. kickoff time coincides with rush-hour traffic.