Newport announces Chandlers Mill and Canal Street closures for repairs

Newport’s summer roadwork is tightening around two streets that matter for daily travel, with Chandlers Mill Road closed to thru traffic for a culvert replacement and Canal Street set to shut down for sidewalk construction. The town is telling drivers to expect reroutes, longer trips, and more congestion around downtown and nearby neighborhoods as crews move through the work.

The Chandler’s Mill closure took effect June 9, when the Highway Department replaced a culvert between 440 and 515 Chandlers Mill Road. The work was expected to take most of the day, and the town’s notice made clear that thru traffic would not be allowed. That matters in Newport because culverts are part of the drainage system that keeps a road from washing out or breaking down after heavy rain. The town had already dealt with similar work on the same corridor earlier this spring, when Chandlers Mill Road was closed April 28 at 440 Chandlers Mill for a culvert installation under a full hard closure. At that time, residents east of 440 Chandlers Mill were told they would still be able to reach the area from John Stark Highway.

Canal Street will bring a different kind of disruption on June 16 and June 17, when it is closed to thru traffic for sidewalk construction. Newport’s notice tells motorists to plan alternate routes and allow extra travel time, a warning that is especially relevant near Downtown Newport, where even short detours can ripple through access for shoppers, workers, and people walking between businesses, side streets, and parking areas. Sidewalk work is meant to improve pedestrian safety and the condition of the streetscape, but while the construction is underway, the street will be another pinch point in the town center.

The two local closures also fit into a broader stretch of roadwork across town. Newport’s Highway Department says it is responsible for the maintenance, rehabilitation, and drainage of all town highways, along with sidewalks, street signs, town bridges, park areas, and snow-and-ice control. Its system covers about 65 miles of roads, including 41 paved miles and 24 dirt miles, which helps explain why even small closures can reflect routine maintenance rather than isolated emergencies.

Those town projects are unfolding alongside daytime lane closures on NH Route 10, where the New Hampshire Department of Transportation began work June 8 and will continue through June 30 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. That state project includes paving, drainage, and repairs to sidewalk tip-downs with detectable devices as part of a $3.8 million resurfacing job covering four sections and 10.6 miles in six towns, with completion scheduled for September 25, 2026. For Newport, June is becoming a month of overlapping work zones, with road drainage, sidewalks, and traffic patterns all changing at once.