OWASA plans to begin some water main work on Tuesday, Dec. 9 that will affect traffic on part of North Columbia Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and North Street for two to three weeks. As in any construction project, weather and other conditions can affect the starting date and progress of the work.

The OWASA crew will dig into the roadway to make connections between existing water lines to reduce disruption of water service in the future if a repair becomes necessary.

The work will occur between 9 a.m. and about 4 p.m. on weekdays. These work hours were selected to avoid the peak morning and afternoon traffic periods, but it is possible under some circumstances that OWASA's work may be not complete at 4 p.m. on some days.

During the work hours, OWASA will close some travel lanes on North Columbia Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and the west end of North Street will be closed during the latter part of the project.

However, OWASA plans to keep one or two traffic lanes open as much as possible in both the southbound and northbound directions of North Columbia Street/Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

The west end of North Street will likely be closed for two to three days during (daytime) work hours in the latter part of the work on the water main connections.

OWASA will install signs and cones to alert and guide drivers around the work areas in accord with a traffic control plan approved by the Town of Chapel Hill and the NC Department of Transportation.

OWASA does not plan to close access to any driveways during the work. If driveway access is affected, OWASA will contact the customers who would be affected in advance if possible.

After the water main connections are complete, OWASA will have a paving contractor install new asphalt where required by the Town of Chapel Hill and the NC Department of Transportation. The timing of the pavement work will depend on weather conditions.