Repair to one of city's largest sewer pipes moves to next phase

Sixth Street
July 9, 2018

Work to repair a major sewer line running underneath downtown Louisville will continue as much of the city sleeps, beginning tonight as MSD closes streets to trench sections of Sixth, Seventh and Eighth streets immediately south of River Road and Washington Street from July 9 to 19. The trenching is needed to establish a “pump-around” that will allow MSD to empty a section of one of the city’s largest and most vital sewer lines, located under West Main Street, that is at risk of collapsing.

“We are using existing pipes under Fourth Street to move flow to the pump station being constructed at Fourth Street and River Road,” said Regulatory Compliance Administrator Heather Dodds. Flow will then move through the pump-around and re-enter the system at Ninth Street, where it will flow to MSD’s Morris Forman Water Quality Treatment Center so it can be treated before being released into the river.

Streets will each be closed at night between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. as workers trench the roadway, lay piping, and cover the pipe with a drivable surface. Dates of nighttime closures are as follows:

•  July 9 – Sixth Street at River Road (extending into July 10 if needed)

•  July 11 – Seventh Street at River Road (extending into July 12  if needed)

•  July 17-19 – Eighth Street at Washington Street

•  July 23 – Washington Street will close at Ninth street for the duration of the project

Following completion of the pump-around, workers will enter the empty pipe through small existing hatches in the pavement at 4th and Main streets. The interior of the pipe will be lined with corrosion-resistant PVC panels fit together by hand and sealed to the unique shape of the pipe itself – essentially creating a sturdy new pipe inside the damaged pipe. The $20 million project is scheduled to be completed by the end of November.

For more information on MSD’s West Main Repair visit http://louisvillemsd.org/westmainrepair.