A Peoples Gas pipeline upgrade will touch parts of Shaler’s Fall Run Park and may lead to certain areas of the park being restricted, according to the utility company and township.
Work on the project was expected to start April 6, Peoples Gas spokesman Nick Paradise said. A completion date is not known.
According to the township, work is expected to begin near Spencer Lane Extension, continuing to Flint Road and Dressel Road and then through Fall Run Park, with access off Stoneridge and Madsen drives.
The project is part of Peoples’ long-term infrastructure improvement plan, an ongoing effort to upgrade more than 4,000 miles of pipeline to enhance safety and reliability of the distribution system and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Paradise said.
“Construction crews will be installing 13,000 feet of new mainline, with work occurring in Shaler as well as Indiana Township and Fox Chapel Borough,” Paradise said. “Only about 1,200 feet of the 13,000 being replaced are located within the park, and our teams will notify Shaler and its parks department if and when we need to restrict access to specific trails or parking lots for the work.”
Fall Run will not be closed during the project, according to the township. While working in the park, crews will fence off areas they are working on that day; there will not be any open ditch lines or holes after work is finished each day.
Supervisors from Peoples Gas and the contractor, Blue Star Pipeline, will be on-site.
Permitted work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Permits allow for overnight work when crossing major roads including Middle Road, Saxonburg Boulevard and Dorseyville Road to minimize impact on school bus traffic, Paradise said.