TORRINGTON – There are two reasons city of Torrington Water/Wastewater crews work on underground pipes in the street near your home or business: Emergencies, such as a broken water line or clogged sewer line, or scheduled work, such as a water service line replacement, valve/hydrant maintenance and sanitary sewer maintenance.

But once on-site, challenges crews face include dealing with traffic, customer impacts, finding the buried lines, and even coping with the weather.

So, here’s some insight into our processes, and the decisions that go into deciding where to stage our equipment.

Only City vehicles critical for the work are parked in the area of the project. These vehicles are positioned to not cause a safety hazard for drivers or pedestrians while maintaining clear driveway access for properties in the area.

Once our equipment arrives at the site, a decision is made to close the street or keep it open for customers that reside in the area. In some neighborhoods, streets can be very narrow, with limited parking. Crews sometimes need to close a road to ensure the public and workers are safe during the project. 

Knowing we have customers who go to work, who have to drop off kids at school and need to get in and out of their neighborhood, we want to make sure we get the job done and keep everyone safe.

Cones, barricades, and signs are there for a reason –to protect our workers from danger and keep the public safe. Our utility workers will assist motorists that need to get to and from their property by directing them through or around the jobsite. 

Everyone has a role to play in this agenda. There should be no higher priority than ensuring our jobsites are safe for drivers and utility workers alike.