PSE&G to upgrade gas facilities in Springfield

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With approval of its Energy Strong program, Public Service Electric & Gas Co. (PSE&G) is upgrading gas facilities in Springfield on the following streets:

• Riverside Drive between Joanna Way and Washington Avenue
• Washington Ave between Riverside Drive and Morris Ave
• Battlehill Avenue between Riverside Drive and Morris Avenue
• Colonial Terrace between Joanna Way and Morris Avenue
• South Maple Avenue between Morris Avenue and Riverside Drive
• Marion Avenue to Morris Avenue
• Perry Place between Warner Avenue and Marion Avenue
• Warner Avenue to Morris Avenue
• Alvin Terrace to Morris Avenue
• Morris Avenue between South Maple Avenue and Washington Avenue

The utility will be installing new gas mains, as well as upgrading associated service lines that carry the gas to homes and businesses. Beginning July 7, work will take place Monday through Saturday between the hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., conditions permitting. The project is expected to be complete in September. Customers will be notified when work is about to begin in their area. This upgrade is part of PSE&G’s recently approved Energy Strong program to strengthen and protect the state’s electric and gas infrastructure from severe weather.

As part of Energy Strong, PSE&G will replace 250 miles of older cast iron main with new plastic pipe in or near flood areas throughout its service territory. This year the utility will replace the first 88 miles, with the remainder scheduled for replacement in 2015. These new pipes will prevent water from entering the mains, increasing the reliability of gas service in these locations.

“We’re working to start building the resiliency into our systems needed to withstand the kind of severe weather that has devastated our state in recent years,” said Ralph LaRossa, PSE&G president and COO. “The gas pipes we are replacing were impacted by flood waters from Hurricane Irene or the storm surges from Superstorm Sandy. Once this work is done, our gas system in these areas will be better protected during future storms.”
To upgrade the mains, it will be necessary to dig trenches in the roadway to install the new pipe. As a result, there may be road closures and/or detours. Local police will be on the scene to direct vehicle and pedestrian traffic. At the end of each workday, the trenches will be filled in. Plates will be secured on any other open areas so people can safely drive and walk.

Once the gas mains are upgraded, PSE&G will need to access customers’ homes to connect their service and meter to the new main. PSE&G will contact homeowners to arrange a date and time to do the work. During this reconnection, customers will be without gas service for approximately four hours. We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

For everyone’s safety, PSE&G crews will be using work area protection including traffic cones, utility work signs, and barriers to allow the job to be done safely. The utility reminds motorists to slow down and follow detour signs when driving through the construction area.

Please refer to www.pseg.com/energystrong for more information about Energy Strong work.