PECO Gas Main Work Won't Affect Old Lincoln Highway Until After Christmas: Middletown Police

Middletown Township Police said the work to replace a gas main in the township won't affect traffic until after Christmas.

The Old Lincoln Highway PECO detour will not go in to effect until after Christmas and police said they will update the public when an exact date is made clear.

PECO announced last week that work to replace a natural gas main in the township is undergoing some changes that will extend the time of completion and create a larger detour, according to PECO officials.

Crews have been working to replace 3,600 feet of natural gas main with new pipe, which enhances safety, is more durable and increases reliability but a new development during work will affect PECO's plans, officials said.

Old Lincoln Highway and Brownsville Road will be closed through the end of February, PECO spokesman Greg Smore said.

Work will then begin on these roads, beginning with Hulmeville Road, continuing west onto Old Lincoln Highway and then on Brownsville Road, Smore said.

The affected roads will be reopened as PECO work is completed, Smore said.

The detours are expected to be in place from approximately 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, with local and emergency access available as needed, Smore said. The roads will be open to traffic outside of the designated work times, according to Smore.

"Initially we expected this work to be completed in early January," Smore said. "However, we identified water infrastructure, which required additional design work to accommodate our replacement project. Because of this, our work will now extend further into the roadway, which will require a more extensive detour than initially expected."

Here is the area of the main pipe replacement work, according to PECO:

• Brownsville Rd. between Broadview Ave. and Old Lincoln Hwy.
  
• Old Lincoln Hwy between Brownsville Rd. and Hulmeville Rd.
  
• Hulmeville Rd. between Old Lincoln Hwy and Richardson Ave.
  
• Richardson Ave. between Hulmeville Rd. and Robinwood Dr.

Smore said work is occurring on Richardson Avenue, which began during the week of Nov. 28.

"This work is part of our multi-year plan to modernize PECO’s natural gas system to enhance safety and service reliability by upgrading existing natural gas main and service lines," Smore said.

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