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Date: 4/14/2021
LONGMEADOW – Residents might notice work crews on certain streets in Longmeadow over the next couple of months. Eversource is replacing several gas mains in town between April and July.
Town Manager Lyn Simmons told Reminder Publishing that Eversource will be replacing old 6-inch low pressure cast iron mains with new medium pressure 2-inch plastic mains on Pleasantview Avenue, Windsor Place, Hillcrest Avenue, Stirling Street and Severn Street. On Longmeadow Street, an old 6-inch low pressure cast iron main is being replaced with a new medium pressure 6-inch plastic main. Bliss Road will also receive a replacement main.
“The replacement of aging bare steel, cast-iron and other leak-prone gas infrastructure is a top priority of ours to minimize the potential for gas leaks and the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere,” said Eversource Senior Media Relations Specialist Priscilla Ress. “Since 2015, with our Gas System Enhancement Plan, or GSEP, we’ve invested approximately $72 million a year and have replaced 500 miles of older gas mains across the commonwealth with state-of-the-art plastic pipe, which is more durable and better able to handle the fluctuations in underground temperatures.”
The work will be conducted between 7 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., on weekdays, though some Saturday work may be necessary. To install the new pipes, trenches between 18 and 24-inches will be excavated in the roads and patched once the work is completed. The work may also require construction on sidewalks, and possibly portions of driveways or lawns. Simmons said a traffic detail may be required on some streets.
Ress said that customers expected to experience a service interruption will be notified.
“We will need access to properties at that time to do a safety check and relight of gas appliances. In some of these projects, we will be moving meters from inside to outside and this work may require some additional time without service,” Ress said. “We will work with our customers to ensure the minimum amount of inconvenience. Typically, a relight will take approximately 15-30 minutes.”
Ress said that employees and contractors will be the ones to relight equipment in homes. She noted they will be identified by marked vehicles and all employees carry photo identification. Employees are also expected to follow all COVID-19 safety protocols.
For more information on the gas main replacements in town, contact the Longmeadow Department of Public Works at 567-3400.