DECATUR - They know you're interested, they know you care.

But when the Farm Progress Show comes to Decatur at the end of August, event organizers are asking the public to please, please, stay away from the Progress City during the first two days of the event.

"It's a trade event, a business event for farmers in the business of farming," said Matt Jungmann, national shows manager for Farm Progress Companies.

Just to be clear: There will be no carnival rides, no elephant ears.

The request wouldn't apply to any concerts held at the site during the three-day event - though none have been announced yet. Decatur residents also will have the opportunity for discounted tickets on the last day of the show, when traffic will be naturally lighter, Jungmann said.

The topic came up at a Thursday evening meeting about Farm Progress Show traffic patterns.

About 150 people attended the meeting at Richland Community College, mostly people who live or work near the show site. Progress City, where the event is to be held, is located next to the school. Residents who live near the site will receive permits in early August that will allow them to get past barricaded streets.

The traffic design itself has been worked on for months by a committee that included event organizers, local and state law enforcement agencies, the Illinois Department of Transportation and others.

An estimated 100,000 visitors will attend the show each day, which begins Aug. 30.

More than half of them will come from the west on Interstate 72 and take Brush College Road south. An estimated 2,200 vehicles per hour will run down that stretch and into the site during the morning hours. To help the flow, a small stretch of Brush College will run only one way before 11:30 a.m. on show days.

Traffic is expected to lighten significantly in the afternoon hours. Richland Community College classes will not be in session during the three days of the show, also cutting down on the traffic, said Greg Florian, president of finance and administration for the college. A planned four-way stop at the intersection of County Highway 24 and County Highway 25 partially alleviated other residents' concerns.

"They gave some pretty good information," said Sharon L. Traughber, who attended with her husband, Bill. The two most likely will have to go out of their way to get to and from their Birch Church Road home.

"It's nothing you can't live with," Bill Traughber said.

It was a common sentiment on Thursday at Richland. A round of applause erupted when one attendee thanked organizers for inconveniencing them with a show that will generate substantial income for the area.

Amy Hoak can be reached at ahoak@; herald-review.com or 421-7972.