ROANOKE, Va., Dec. 17, 2010 – Appalachian Power will undertake work in downtown Roanoke next month to upgrade part of its underground electricity distribution network.
 
The company will replace an underground vault adjacent to the Wachovia Tower and directly across from 19 Salem Ave. SE.   Work is scheduled to begin Monday, January 3 and is projected to conclude within 30 days.
 
Most of the work by Appalachian and its contract crews will occur between 6 P.M. and 6 A.M. on weekdays and possibly on weekends if required.
 
The westbound lane of Salem Ave. between Wall Street and Jefferson Ave. will be closed for the duration of the project. The eastbound traffic lane and parallel parking spots will be open from 6 A.M. to 6 P.M.
 
Traffic in both directions on Salem may be diverted at times when heavy equipment is in use at the work site, late night or on weekends.
 
The sidewalk adjacent to the work site will be closed for safety for the duration of the project. The southside sidewalk will be open to pedestrians.
 
Workers will demolish an underground vault built in 1947 and replace it with a new pre-cast structure. Other work, including replacing old aluminum cable with copper, will make the downtown network more reliable.
 
No interruption of downtown electric service is anticipated.
 
Appalachian Power provides electricity to 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee. It is a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), one of the largest electric utilities in the United States. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system. 
 
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