Planned improvements to the electric transmission system

Indiana Michigan Power plans to invest about $5 million to improve the electric transmission system in St. Joseph County.
The Sturgis Area Improvements project is essential to ensure continued reliable energy service is available to customers, according to I& M spokesperson Tracy Warner.
Plans include upgrading about three miles of 69-kilovolt transmission line. Warner said existing wood poles will be replaced with steel poles and new wire. The improvements are intended to reduce the possibility of outages and speed recovery of service when outages do occur.
The section of the Pigeon River-Sturgis transmission line that will be rebuilt connects the Stubey Road and Sturgis substations.
Most of the line will be rebuilt within the existing I& M right-of-way, with potential route options in the city of Sturgis.
The project, which will begin this year, is expected to be complete by 2018.
For more about the project, visit: IndianaMichiganPower.com.