A major Oil City water project is underway along the banks of Oil Creek.
New water lines are being installed across the creek bed near the confluence with the Allegheny River. The intricate work requires crews to drill beneath the creek floor and install new water lines.
“There are no difficulties to this point,” said Jason Herman, director of the city’s water department. “The boring will go through to Relief Street and then be tied into an existing line.”
“We’ve had no water service disruptions during the boring,” said Herman.
Once the Oil Creek work is done, a task that could be finished in a few weeks, a similar project will begin along the Allegheny River.
New lines will be installed beneath the river bed. That pipeage provides water supplies to the North Side neighborhood.
The water lines in the river will extend from the city’s industrial park, formerly the Oilwell Supply plant, in Siverly across the river to Pumphouse Road in the East End.
In March, city council awarded a $1.4 million contract to Mortimer’s Excavating of Pulaski to install the new lines.
In addition, Arcadis, a design and consulting firm that has worked on several water-related projects with the city, was awarded a $98,750 contract to oversee the work.
