The Bristol County Water Authority will soon begin $2.3 million worth of improvements to a key pump station off Metacom Avenue, a move that officials believe will help with fire protection and could one day also result in better water pressure for residents in higher-lying parts of Bristol.

Workers this month will start replacing an older pumping station at the end of Carr Lane, just north of Bayview Avenue. The pumps there currently work in conjunction with two large storage tanks on the site and while they are not failing, a BCWA engineer said they are inadequate to meet the authority’s future needs:

“They’re too small .. if we want to add people to the high pressure zone,” said BCWA engineering project manager Susan Rabideau.

That “high pressure zone” is an area with increased water pressure fed by tanks and pump stations. While replacing the Carr Lane pump station won’t immediately increase pressure to rate payers in the vicinity, Ms. Rabideau said that it will improve the authority’s fire protection goals and is part of a long-term plan to expand the high pressure zone.

Over the next several years, BCWA workers plan to install a new pump at Hope and Tupelo Street, and make some infrastructural changes in the authority’s lines. Once those projects are complete, the new, larger pumps at Carr will help the authority expand its high pressure zone. The cost for those projects is not included in the $2.3 million Carr Lane cost, Ms. Rabideau said.

“We have many people who have inadequate pressure that want to be on the high pressure zone,” she said. “We’re trying to expand it.”

Carr Lane

The BCWA has hired Hart Engineering to complete the Carr Lane job. The work includes constructing a new building to house pumps, and doing related work around the property. Work is expected to commence this month and will run through the Spring of 2018.

BCWA officials believe the work will have a minimal impact on surrounding traffic and homes, though Ms. Rabideau said there could be impacts to traffic on Carr and the possibility of temporary water shutoffs. Residents will be notified in advance if the water needs to be turned off, and workers will be on the site Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.