For Immediate Release
August 24, 2001

Pepco announced today that work would begin Monday, August 27, on the residential phase of its project to upgrade underground power lines in Georgetown. In May, Pepco announced a $30 million project to rebuild its underground infrastructure in Georgetown, including $10 million in improvements in residential areas.

Work in the commercial M Street and Wisconsin Avenue corridors, known as The Georgetown Project, is scheduled to begin next month. The Georgetown Project is a joint, coordinated effort to upgrade underground utilities involving Pepco, Verizon, Washington Gas, the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority and the D.C. Department of Transportation's streetscape project.

Residential upgrades include new cable, transformers and switching mechanisms to improve reliability, reduce the potential for electrical faults and allow for growth in the area's demand for power. Most of the new cable will be installed in existing conduits. However, some conduit may need to be added or rebuilt during the construction and this would involve excavation in some streets.

The residential work will begin in an approximately six-block area north of M Street to just south of Dumbarton Street, between 27th and 30th Streets. The highlighted areas on the attached map illustrate the work parameters of the entire residential project.

Pepco and its contractor, W. A. Chester, Inc., will generally work in two or three locations simultaneously within a specified work zone, Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The estimated completion for repairs in the first work zone is mid-October. The entire rewiring project is expected to be completed by 2004.

There will be some traffic and parking restrictions within the work zone, but access for residents will always be available.

Residents in the affected area may experience periodic outages as the work moves from block to block. Pepco will provide advance notification when possible. Outages, when they occur, should last no longer than four hours.