Route 25's New Turn Lane Is Listed for 2027 Construction. Its Bid Date Is December 2028.
The stretch of NH Route 25 between the two ends of Lake Shore Drive was built in 1956. It is 40 to 44 feet wide, with 12-foot travel lanes and 8- to 10-foot shoulders. It carries about 16,200 vehicles a day, and 9% of them are trucks. Posted speeds are 30 and 45 mph. NHDOT's 2023 map of the project area labels Senters Market, Red Hill Dairy, Rubbin' Butts BBQ Diner, Goldsmiths, Wild Meadow, and Ace Hardware along the corridor. If you drive this road, you already know the left turns. You wait to swing across oncoming traffic toward Glidden Road, and the driver behind you hopes you go soon.
NHDOT project 40639 is the state's plan for that problem. Two official documents now give it two different years. The state's adopted Ten Year Plan puts construction in 2027. NHDOT's own project presentation puts the bid advertisement in December 2028. The plan's construction year and the department's engineering schedule don't line up, and the gap between them shows how much work is left before any paving starts.
The design keeps the road's current width and divides it differently. NHDOT's August 14, 2026 release describes it this way. The two 12-foot lanes and eight-foot shoulders become two 12-foot travel lanes, a 12-foot two-way center left-turn lane, and shoulders of four to five feet. Each intersection gets its own fix:
| Location | Proposed change |
|---|---|
| Lake Shore Drive (west) | New intersection geometry meant to improve safety and manage access |
| Glidden Road | Route 25 widened to add a left-turn lane |
| Lake Shore Drive (east) | Route 25 widened to add a left-turn lane |
| Corridor between them | Center two-way left-turn lane, narrower shoulders |
The reasons come from the corridor's history. NHDOT's January 2026 presentation counts 102 crashes along the corridor from 2010 through 2019. Ten were at Lake Shore Drive west, 8 at Glidden Road, and 2 at Lake Shore Drive east. None were fatal or caused serious injury. The same presentation includes a photo of Glidden Road looking west, captioned to show the poor sight distance for drivers pulling onto Route 25.
There is no roundabout or traffic signal in the current plan, though both were studied. At the October 3, 2023 public meeting, NHDOT's options included joining Glidden Road and Lake Shore Drive into a single four-way intersection, controlled either by stop signs or by a roundabout. The roundabout version modeled at level of service B in 2024 and C in 2044, which was better than the stop-sign version at peak hours. The 2023 analysis also found that traffic signal warrants were not met anywhere on the corridor or at any of the three intersections. The 2026 plan uses the existing pavement for a center turn lane and adds turn lanes at two intersections.
On paper, the schedule looks settled. The final 2027–2036 Ten Year Plan, marked "Adopted as law under HB2026, as amended" and dated August 19, 2026 on its cover, lists Moultonborough 40639 with construction in 2027. That entry carries $4,092,480 in federal-aid highway construction money, on top of $1,005,748 already spent, for a total project cost of $5,098,228.
NHDOT's January 15, 2026 presentation at the Moultonborough Public Library gives a different date:
| Ten Year Plan, adopted 2026 | NHDOT presentation, January 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Key date | Construction year 2027 | Advertisement date December 5, 2028 |
| Dollar figure | $5,098,228 total project cost, including inflation and indirects | $4,414,317 budget in 2025 dollars; construction estimated at $5.5 million |
| What the date depends on | Not stated | Public hearing, NEPA, right-of-way acquisitions, and final design |
The plan pairs its 2027 construction year with $4,092,480 in construction funding. NHDOT's advertisement date is when NHDOT expects to put the job out to contractors, and construction comes after that. As of January, engineering was 25% complete.
The project budget slide lists the steps the December 2028 date depends on:
Current Ad Date 12/5/2028 – Requires Public Hearing, NEPA, ROW Acquisitions, & Final Design.
The presentation's schedule slide gives rough durations for most of those steps:
Several of these steps take two years or more. Construction comes last and takes at least a year. Even if the December 2028 advertisement holds, the finished road is unlikely to appear in 2027, the construction year the adopted plan shows.
The project has already missed one schedule. In 2023, NHDOT projected final design and right-of-way work in 2024 and 2025, with construction in 2027. The 2027 construction year stayed in the Ten Year Plan, but the engineering schedule moved later.
The first step on that list has started. On August 18, 2026, a commission appointed by the Governor and Executive Council, chaired by Bruce Cheney, met at NHDOT in Concord. The meeting did not take testimony; it was held to plan a public hearing in Moultonborough on August 25. That hearing was set for 6:00 p.m. at Moultonborough Fire/Rescue Central Station, 1035 Whittier Highway.
Under RSA 230:14, this kind of commission decides whether there is occasion to lay out or alter a highway as the commissioner proposes. RSA 230:19 directs it to look at the proposed location and hear from interested parties. The January presentation lists that hearing as the start of a sequence. Next come a commission request to Governor and Council, preparation and notice for the hearing, and then a "Report of the Commissioner & Finding Of Necessity," each with its own time estimate. NHDOT's project page still lists the status as "Design," and the January 2026 materials are its newest files. Owners along the corridor who want to know how right-of-way work could affect a specific parcel should take that question to NHDOT's Bureau of Right of Way and their own attorney. This post is general information, not legal advice.
While the schedule has slipped, the cost has risen. The January 2024 draft of the 2025–2034 Ten Year Plan listed the project at a total cost of $2,902,109, with right-of-way in 2025 and construction in 2027. The adopted 2027–2036 plan lists $5,098,228 for the same project and the same construction year. NHDOT's January presentation says the project budget rose in January 2025 from $1.74 million. It also says its own figures leave out 12% administration costs and 4.4% inflation. The $5.5 million construction estimate on the same slide is already larger than the construction line in the adopted plan.
Until a contractor is hired, the road stays as it is: two lanes, wide shoulders, and the Glidden Road turn that NHDOT's own photo uses to show limited sight distance. Rubbin' Butts BBQ at 313 Whittier Highway is open Thursday through Sunday, according to its locations page. Wild Meadow Paddlesports lists its address as 6 Whittier Highway and keeps seasonal hours. Those businesses' customers will be among the first drivers to use the new turn lanes, and the earliest that can happen is after a contract advertised in December 2028.
Until then, the most reliable signs of progress will be new files on NHDOT's project page. Look for a commission report, a finding of necessity, and an advertisement date that holds or moves. The NHDOT project contact listed on that page is Jason M. Ayotte, P.E., at (603) 271-3921.
If you own property along Route 25 near Lake Shore Drive, or you're considering a home or business site on this stretch, a project timeline like this one belongs in your plans. Gail McCarthy of REEN USA follows Lakes Region road projects closely and can help you think through what a multi-year schedule like 40639 means for your timing. Let's Connect.
From the first conversation to closing day, Gail delivers thoughtful guidance, responsive communication, and a high level of professionalism. Her experience in both property ownership and brokerage gives clients a practical, informed perspective that helps them move forward with greater confidence.
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