If you've driven from the west side of Apex toward Salem Street this year, you already know the drill: down Olive Chapel, over to Williams Street, then onto Salem itself, the same street that's been squeezed into one lane since January. It is the official detour for a separate road closure, and the route also runs along Salem Street while the streetscape work is underway.
The Salem Streetscape is one of two projects affecting downtown Apex this year. A second project is on a different street, with its own timeline, and the two share a detour route. That overlap is the reason a Saturday morning coffee run has felt different all summer, and it's the reason fall probably won't feel like a reset even after the streetscape ribbon gets cut.
Two Projects, One Shared Street
The Salem Streetscape project is the one everyone in town has heard about. The construction contract runs January through December 2026. Work began in January, and North Salem Street has been restricted to one-way traffic from Saunders Street to West Chatham Street for months. The town put real money behind it: Apex committed more than $4.7 million to transform North Salem Street with new walkways, lighting, trees and pedestrian-friendly design. When it wraps, the plan includes a new Saunders Street Gathering Space with pergolas, seating, outdoor games, and a digital information kiosk.
The timeline has already slipped once. Design changes tied to electrical work paused the project for several weeks this spring, and business owners along Salem Street have felt it directly. The April WRAL report quoted Steven Perticona, a manager at Anna's Pizzeria, on the drop in foot traffic and sales:
"We're tracking down anywhere from 10 to 20%."
Despite the pause, town leadership held the line on the schedule. Mayor Jacques Gilbert said the project remained on track to be completed by October, with two-way traffic returning at that time. Physical construction was anticipated to begin in February and wrap up in October.
A separate project on the Apex Peakway is also affecting traffic a few blocks away. Apex Peakway will remain closed from S. Salem Street to Towhee Drive until summer 2026, work that's necessary to build the connector road ahead of a new Peakway bridge over Salem Street and the CSX railroad. The projects also share a detour route: traffic detoured off the closed Peakway is routed along Olive Chapel Road, Williams Street, and Salem Street.
The Peakway detour ends on the stretch of Salem Street narrowed to one lane by the streetscape project. The two projects share the same stretch of road.
| Project | What's closed | Detour route | Town's target finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salem Streetscape | Salem St, one-way southbound, Saunders to W. Chatham | Saunders, Elm, Moore, Seaboard for downtown access | October 2026 |
| Peakway SW Connector | Apex Peakway, S. Salem St to Towhee Dr | Olive Chapel Rd, Williams St, Salem St | Listed as "until summer 2026," no firm date |
Why the West Side Won the Summer
This is the mechanism behind something a lot of residents have noticed without quite naming it: downtown traffic thinning out during the day while Sweetwater Town Center and the roads around Pleasant Park stay busy. It's not that people stopped liking Salem Street. It's that anyone coming from the west side now has to choose between fighting a narrowed one-way street or just staying put on the side of town where the detour already lands them.
Foxtail Coffee Co. opened a second Apex location this year at 1451 Richardson Road in the growing Sweetwater Town Center, after its first store near downtown.
None of this means downtown is struggling across the board. It means the town has been actively working to offset the construction drag while it lasts. The recent Saunders Lot expansion added 152 new parking spaces right in the heart of downtown, a 40 percent increase in overall parking capacity. The town has also leaned on a simple, honest pitch to keep dollars local: about 67 cents of every dollar spent locally stays in Apex, strengthening other businesses and supporting local job growth. That message matters more when you consider the scale of what's at stake downtown: Apex counts 132 diverse local businesses downtown, from coffee shops and restaurants to boutiques, salons, and wellness spots.
Fall's Calendar Still Lives on Salem Street, Mostly
Here's where it gets useful if you're planning your fall around this. Downtown's social district program hasn't skipped a beat during construction. The Local Spot Passport returns and runs through September 7th, 2026, letting visitors grab a to-go drink and stroll the designated outdoor areas while browsing shops. That gives you a few more weekends to use it before it wraps around Labor Day.
Two of the season's biggest street events are also downtown fixtures. Festa Italiana runs the third Saturday in September, which lands on September 19 this year. Later that month, the Apex Latino Arts Festival, also held downtown, celebrates the town's Latino community by highlighting Latino arts and culture in late September.
Both of those festivals traditionally use Salem Street itself. Given everything above, that's worth a second thought before you pencil in an address. The town has already shown it will move a signature event rather than force it through active construction. PeakFest was relocated to Hunter Street and the Town Hall Campus for 2026 specifically because of the Salem Streetscape construction. If the streetscape's finishing work runs long again the way it did this spring, don't be surprised if a fall festival gets the same treatment. Check the town's calendar close to the date rather than assuming Salem Street is the venue by default.
Where the New Openings Are Located
The restaurant openings this year include more on the west side than downtown.
On Salem Street itself, Popovers Cafe had its grand opening at 219 N. Salem Street, with owners Mustafa and Juliette Ozturk serving sweet and savory popover pastries. It opened while the streetscape construction was underway.
On the west side, the newer names are landing closer to Sweetwater and the Peakway corridor. Kaara Indian Restaurant opened at 2700 Stokesdale Avenue with modern Indian fine dining, two dining halls, a private room, a patio, and a full bar. Not far away, Lime & Lemon Restaurant & Lounge is opening at 2025 Creekside Landing Drive, pairing a premium Indian restaurant with a separate late-night lounge that has its own entrance.
One opening is downtown and three are on the west side, with Foxtail Coffee on both sides.
The Practical Read for the Rest of the Year
If you live in Apex, the practical advice is to consider routing around downtown until two-way traffic is running on Salem Street. The Peakway's own reopening date has been described only as "until summer 2026" with no firmer commitment attached, which means the detour that funnels traffic onto Salem Street could easily still be active after the streetscape work wraps. Two finish lines, moving independently, sharing one stretch of road. That's the reason this fall in Apex is going to feel like an extension of the summer you just had, not a clean break from it.
Whether you're watching this because you're curious about your own neighborhood or because you're thinking further ahead about a move within Apex or the wider Triangle, having a clear read on how a town's infrastructure projects affect daily travel is exactly the kind of local groundwork Live Raleigh does for clients every day. If you'd like to talk through what any of this means for your own plans, Let's Connect — Schedule a Free Consultation.
