Emergency water main repair to close several lanes on South Academy Boulevard in Colorado Springs for a week
Scott Harrison
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — Drivers on a half-mile stretch of South Academy Boulevard between Chelton Road and Astrozon Boulevard can expect slower travel and increased traffic congestion this week.
An emergency water main repair will close half of the lanes along that busy street on the city’s southeast side.
That work started at 9 a.m. Tuesday morning and continues until 3 p.m., through next Monday.
The southbound left lane, as well as the northbound left and middle lanes, will remain closed until next Monday afternoon.
The reason for the repair is a leaking 20-inch water line installed under the bridge across Sand Creek.
Colorado Springs Utilities noticed the leak a month ago and shut off water to that line.
Crews isolated the line without disrupting service to customers.
“We’re going to be digging into that area to expose that main,” said Alex Trefry, a CSU spokesman. “And then, of course, afterwards, we’ll be doing restoration — which is also complex because it’s on a bridge. It’s going to take us a little more time than our average repair, but we’re doing it as quickly as we can.”
Springs Utilities didn’t fix the leak sooner, as providing advance notice to customers and drivers would have been beneficial, and because the repair job requires a large amount of coordination and planning.
The utility issued a release about the closure last Friday.
Crews will start checking out that water main on Tuesday and get a better idea of what they need to do.
It’s unclear if the main is not part of the South Academy improvement project that paused for the summer, but should resume this fall.
Businesses along the project area will remain open, and drivers should drive carefully and watch for crews working in the street.