SOMERVILLE – New Jersey American Water has begun replacing four sections of its 36-inch water main on Route 206 north of Bridge Street to prevent more breaks of the main now at the end of its useful life.
The water main, which serves a large portion of the company’s Central operating region including Somerville, Raritan and Bridgewater, had breaks in June 2023 and on Oct. 30.
During the repair of the latest break, an inspection confirmed several portions of the main needed to be replaced before a comprehensive rehabilitation planned for early 2025, according to the utility.
The work, which will be done 24 hours a day, is scheduled to be completed by Dec. 18.
The water main had breaks in June 2023 and on Oct. 30.
Customers in Bridgewater, Raritan and Somerville will continue to have water service during the construction, but some areas may notice periods of low pressure or discoloration. If discoloration occurs, customers should run the cold water taps only for three to five minutes at the lowest level of the house, the company said in a press release.
Route 206 is expected to remain open during the work by the contractor, J. Fletcher Creamer & Son. However, traffic restrictions or alternating traffic patterns are likely during work hours. All emergency vehicles and local traffic will be allowed access during construction.
“After the main break in 2023, we identified this 36-inch transmission main as being vulnerable to similar failures, so we took proactive measures to help mitigate the impact of another break by reinforcing the local distribution system. We also designed a long-term solution to begin construction in early 2025,” said Carmen Tierno, senior director of Central Operations, New Jersey American Water. “While our mitigation efforts helped reduce the impact of the recent break, further inspection of the main during the repair revealed a need to install new sections of main now to help avert another issue over the holidays.”
The company’s long-term solution includes the installation of a new 30-inch reinforcement main in the first quarter of 2025. When that is done, the full rehabilitation of the 36-inch transmission main will be addressed, according to the company.
Email: mdeak@MyCentralJersey.com
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Route 206 water main in Somerville NJ being replaced