MANSFIELD - For more than three decades, motorists have taken advantage of the state's Tourist Information Center in Mansfield to stop for directions, grab a cup of coffee, use rest rooms and pick up literature about attractions in the area.

All that will stop after Saturday when the center on Interstate 95 will close, along with other such offices around the state.

The shutdowns were announced as a result of Gov. Deval Patrick's plans to close a $600 million budget gap through cuts in programs and services that could eliminate as many as 2,000 jobs.

Cynthia Mendes, who has managed the Mansfield center for 20 years, said she was notified of the closing Thursday morning.

She said she was told other tourist information centers across the state also will close. The Mansfield center, opened in 1976, operates seven days a week and employs six people.

Arthur Motta, executive director of the Southeastern Massachusetts Convention and Visitor's Bureau, which operates the centers, said the elimination of state funding left no choice but to close the center.

The Mansfield center is especially busy during the summer and during the football season, when large numbers of tourists arrive for Patriots games.

Kofi Jones, a spokesman for the state Office of Travel and Tourism, said $1 million the state allots to support its 11 tourist centers was eliminated under the governor's latest cuts.

Some of the centers do have alternate funding sources, she said, so it's not certain all of them will close.