By Kelsey Ligon
Duke Energy is replacing poles and overhead wiring along Zionsville Road, aiming to provide a more flexible and reliable power supply to the area.
The Reconductor Project is taking place along a 1.4-mile stretch from I-465 to Sycamore Street now through the beginning of June, if weather cooperates.
This is the first of three Duke Energy projects for Zionsville in an effort to update services. Currently, most of the electric load is handled from the Turkey Foot substation, near Turkey Foot Road and Temple Avenue.
Duke Energy district engineer D’Mon Williams said this type of update is happening across the state. The company is working to strengthen the system throughout the region to make it more robust and sound.
Zionsville has a lot of old infrastructure that is “overhead” instead of underground, leaving it exposed to more inclement weather and requiring more updates. The new poles and higher-capacity wires should create a greater supply of reliable electric service for Zionsville as well as provide more flexibility to reroute power from other sources in the event of an outage.
“It’s kind of like updating the brakes on your car,” Williams said.
After the project is complete, Zionsville residents should notice an exponential drop in outages during storms. Duke Energy does not anticipate any project-related outages.
During periods of work on the project, traffic along the 1.4-mile portion of Zionsville Road will be restricted to one lane.
