Seattle City Light Crews completed installation of a new power line to serve the Chinatown-International District about nine hours ahead of schedule Monday morning.
Seattle City Light Crews completed installation of a new power line to serve the Chinatown-International District well ahead of schedule Wednesday morning.
Workers finished testing the new underground cable and its connections and were preparing to return power to customers about 11 a.m.
Work started at 11 p.m. Tuesday, June 5. Project planners anticipated the work could take up to 20 hours, but crews did not encounter any of the complications that are common with such installations. Old cable that had to be removed came out easily. Existing cables and other equipment that were connected to the new line were in good condition and did not need to be replaced.
“City Light appreciates the cooperation of Chinatown-International District residents and business owners who helped the utility schedule this important work to minimize the impact on the community,” Customer Service and Energy Delivery Officer Phil West said. “We are glad to complete this work early so they can avoid further inconveniences.”
The new power line, called a feeder, provides a second source of power for the Chinatown-International District that will improve reliability of service and expand capacity for future economic development.
During planned maintenance, City Light will now be able to re-route power to avoid outages for customers in the area. Likewise, should the utility experience an equipment failure, repair crews will be able to isolate the damage and restore power to customers even before they complete repairs.
Seattle City Light is the 10th largest public electric utility in the United States. It has some of the lowest cost customer rates of any urban utility, providing reliable, renewable and environmentally responsible power to nearly 1 million Seattle area residents. City Light has been greenhouse gas neutral since 2005, the first electric utility in the nation to achieve that distinction.