Construction Impacts

Congress Street

The City is working toward completion of this phase of the project by June 13.

For the week of June 8, 2026:

  • Road excavation and gravel work continues on Congress Street.
  • Paving anticipated Tuesday, June 9
  • Road striping anticipated for Thursday, June 11
  • Congress Street reduced to one lane  
  • Fleet Street closures throughout the week

Message boards and traffic signs will be deployed in advance to notify motorists. Pedestrians will still be able to access and use sidewalks in the closure area. Businesses remain open and deliveries will be accommodated. Normal traffic circulation will be restored at the end of each workday.

The project work proceeds towards Maplewood Avenue with the sewer and drainage installations before moving on to begin work between Vaughan Mall and Fleet Street. This portion of work will also include the restoration of Congress Street in the fall of 2026 beginning after Labor Day. Work is scheduled to take place daily, Monday through Friday but there may be brief interruptions if conditions become too severe for crews to work effectively.

A pre-construction public information meeting for the project was held on December 9, 2025. For more information, visit the meeting presentation, the video recording of the meeting and the project page.

State Street

Paving anticipated on Monday, June 8

  • State Street from Middle Street to Memorial Bridge
  • Pleasant Street from Porter Street to State Street
  • Daniel Street from Memorial Bridge to Chapel Street

Pavement Management - Resurfacing

Resurfacing - Weather permitting, a parking ban will be in effect for the micro-surfacing treatment, starting at 7 am on Monday and Tuesday, June 22 and 23 on:

  • Lincoln Avenue
  • Richards Avenue
  • Rockland Street
  • Sherburne Avenue
  • Elwyn Avenue
  • McNabb Court
  • Parrott Ave

Elwyn Road

All underground utility work has been completed ahead of schedule. Road reconstruction activities between Taft and Edgewood Roads, including base course paving, are scheduled to begin the week of June 8 and continue through the week of June 22, 7 am to 6 pm. During this phase of work, westbound traffic on Elwyn Road will be detoured via Taft Road to Wilson Road, and then to Route 1 (Lafayette Road). Eastbound traffic from Route 1 (Lafayette Road) will be maintained with one lane of travel. Local traffic will be accommodated. Two-way traffic will be restored at the end of each workday. Signage, flaggers, and police details will be stationed at strategic locations along the detour route to direct and manage traffic through the Elwyn Park neighborhood. Final paving and restoration -- including loam and seeding of disturbed areas -- will take place in the fall. The Department of Public Works hosted an Elwyn Road Reconstruction Project Public Information Meeting in the DPW Training Room (680 Peverly Hill Road in Portsmouth) on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. For meeting presentations, background and more information, visit the project page.

Elwyn Park

Wetland permitting required for the work is currently in process. Basement inspections required for underground utility design have concluded. Public comments regarding proposed traffic improvements on Van Buren are currently being evaluated

NH-DOT

Median Barrier & Guardrail Installation on I-95

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) continues day and night work to install a median barrier and guardrail on I-95 northbound and southbound between Mile Marker (MM) 8.0 in North Hampton and MM 13.2 in Portsmouth. This work is expected to continue through September 2026. Single lane closures and shoulder closures are being implemented for nightwork on northbound I-95 to facilitate this work. Southbound work will follow once the northbound is complete. Road users are also encouraged to sign up for free, real-time construction and traffic related messages.