Expect closure next week at Portsmouth Street and Kirby Drive

Concrete crews will follow inlet work at Portsmouth next week to remove, frame and replace the intersection pavement on Kirby crossing Portsmouth.

This process will necessitate closure of Portsmouth vehicle access to and from Kirby and is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 12, through Thursday, Sept. 15, of next week. Motorists needing to access Portsmouth destinations between Kirby and Park will need to either use Park access from Richmond or Norfolk access from Kirby.

Work at the 59/Kirby intersection will continue over the weekend, impacting the northern feeder road heading west. The northern-most. or right two lanes, will be closed from late tonight through Sunday, Sept. 11, and will reopen to full access for next week. The following weekend, Friday, Sept. 16, through Sunday, Sept. 18, similar work will impact the southern half of the feeder road closing the inside two lanes Friday night through Sunday.

Construction activity will continue in the coming week along the east side of Kirby Drive, pushing traffic to the west. Five lanes are now open from 59 to Richmond, two lanes north and two lanes south and a continuous left-turn lane.

Over the past week, the focus has been substantial water line improvements at the Richmond/Kirby intersection on the west side of the intersection. Crews have been doing this work overnight so as to minimize traffic disruption. It is anticipated that water line work at this intersection will be completed within the next few days.

Storm inlet work will begin at the Algerian/Kirby intersection and should also be completed prior to the weekend. During this phase vehicular access to Algerian will be controlled using flagmen. Motorists with Algerian Way destinations today should consider using Lomitas Street access off of the 59 feeder road just east of the Kirby/59 intersection.

And the Buffalo Speedway construction has recently seen the transfer of services to the newly constructed underground ducts.  Roadway crews were given the go-ahead to remobilize and have begun assembling equipment on site. The first order of business once they reconvene will be water line installation and storm sewer work.

Water line work is currently scheduled to begin Tuesday, Sept. 13. Storm sewer lines will be installed as well and will impact traffic lanes in both directions. This work will take place overnight and will utilize flagmen to direct traffic.

For more information on Upper Kirby construction projects and for issues and concerns as construction progresses, contact Travis Younkin at 713-524-8000 or travis@upperkirby.org.