TAMPA, Fla. — Helene is expected to bring strong winds, heavy rains and storm surge to the Tampa Bay area. Evacuation orders have been issued ahead of the storm.

Due to the evacuations, some roads and bridges will experience increased traffic. Our real-time traffic map will help you check the roads before you leave and before you return home.

Use our real-time traffic map below to check the status of roads near you.

JUST ARRIVED: At the direction of the U.S. Coast Guard, Pinellas County plans to lock its three movable bridges in the closed position at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 25, ahead of Hurricane Helene. The Dunedin Causeway bridges, the Beckett Bridge in Tarpon Springs and the Park Boulevard Bridge in Seminole will remain open to vehicle traffic, but will not reopen to boat traffic until conditions clear after the storm.

Owners of high clearance boats who need to move their boats to a safer location ahead of the storm should do so before the bridges are closed tonight.

The Florida Highway Patrol and Florida Department of Transportation will close the Sunshine Skyway Bridge when wind speeds reach approximately 45 miles per hour. The Gandy Bridge, Howard Frankland Bridge and/or Courtney Campbell Causeway will be closed when waves make it unsafe to navigate.

JUST ARRIVED: The Florida Division of Emergency Management has partnered to offer free rides (up to $35) to federally qualified shelters in counties where Helene is under a state of emergency. Open the Uber app, tap Account & Wallet, and enter the promo code HELENERELEF.