PPL Plan To Level Trees Has Lancaster Residents Bewildered, Upset

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When the tree cutters arrive in August, 31 homeowners in the Eden Manor neighborhood of Lancaster city fear they essentially will be losing their backyards.

The 50-year-old homes, on Princess Anne Drive off Pitney Road, border a high-voltage power line that was built before the neighborhood.

Unfortunately for the homeowners, PPL has adopted a stricter policy of keeping its rights of way free of trees.

Trees that once were allowed to grow because they were not underneath the wires must now be taken down.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/666456_PPL-plan-to-level-trees-has-residents-bewildered–upset.html#ixzz1xUyKOCJS

PPL Plans To Upgrade Electric System

As promised after storms disabled the regional power grid three times in 2011, PPL Electric Utilities on Thursday announced the start of a $35 million project to upgrade its distribution system in southern and western Berks County and parts of Lancaster and Chester counties.

During public hearings in Harrisburg and Reading this year called by state Sen. Judy Schwank, a Ruscombmanor Township Democrat, and state Rep. Thomas R. Caltagirone, a Reading Democrat, PPL officials promised an overall $3 billion upgrade to its electric grid, which covers parts of Berks and 29 other counties.

Electric customers in the project area are served by a network of 69-kilovolt transmission lines that are nearing their capacity, PPL officials said.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=378229

PPL To Invest $664 Million In Electric Grid

PPL Electric Utilities, which suffered extensive power outages during two storms in 2011, plans to invest $664 million this year in the electric grid serving eastern and central Pennsylvania, including much of the Lehigh Valley.

The investment represents nearly a 50 percent increase over what it spent last year on new transmission lines, poles and substations, the company announced Friday.

More than 400,000 PPL customers lost power in August after the remnants of Hurricane Irene swept through eastern Pennsylvania. And an October snowstorm cut power to 388,000 PPL customers, nearly half of whom were in the Lehigh Valley. Nearly 10,000 in the Lehigh Valley had no electricity for six days after the snow.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/business/mc-ppl-grid-investment-20120217,0,4685365.story