COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — Drivers in Colorado Springs will notice a rather large cone zone at the intersection of Austin Bluffs Parkway and Academy Boulevard. Colorado Springs Utilities is adding valves to a water main underneath the roadway.
This is in an effort to reduce outages for future work on the main. In a recent press release, “Adding valves to this water system will make it so when Springs Utilities performs repairs and scheduled maintenance, significantly less people are affected when the water main is emptied.”
I spoke with Somer Mese with Colorado Springs Utilities. She says “Traffic will be impacted, and we want to apologize in advance for the impact…” Mese also encourages people to support the business in the area during the work. “If you’re coming to this area, please still visit these businesses.”
Originally, sixty-two businesses were expected to be affected with water outages during the valve installations. According to a recent press release from Colorado Springs Utilities, “After extensive coordination and out of the box thinking, Colorado Springs Utilities is significantly reducing the humber of customers expected to experience planned water outages...” The work is scheduled to be completed as follows:
Academy Boulevard:
- April 14-22: Preparatory work
- Early morning of April 23 through early morning of April 26: Water valve install
- May 2-3: Road restoration
Austin Bluffs Parkway:
- May 4-13: Preparatory work
- Early Morning May 14 through early morning of May 17: Water valve install
- May 24-June 7: Road restoration
Colorado Springs Utilities is working with the six affected businesses to provide alternative water hookups, jugs of water and portable toilets. They say “During the outages, Springs Utilities is asking nearby customers to limit their water usage, due to the water main being drained. For the 72-hour water outage periods in April and May they ask that customers hold off on watering lawns, avoid using water for cleaning outdoor surfaces or washing vehicles and limit any non-essential activities that typically consume large amounts of water.”
Springs Utilities says “Lane closures will occur in every direction along the intersection of N Academy Boulevard and Austin Bluffs Parkway, with turns onto side streets and through the intersection heavily affected. Please plan ahead when traveling through the area and follow posted signage. Crews will be working in the street during this project, so please drive safely, carefully and slowly. Maps of the traffic impacts are available on the project webpage [csu.org].”
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