DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Ameren Illinois has announced it has made several improvements to Decatur's energy infrastructure over the last several months.
Officials say smart technology, known as "Vipers," were installed at the Baltimore Avenue, Illinois Route 51, and Mound Road substations in Decatur. Vipers are used to detect problems on power lines, and can send information to Ameren's dispatch office in Decatur. A larger transformer was also installed at the Baltimore substation, and is expected to enhance service reliability for about 8,000 customers.
Work was also performed on power lines east of Lake Decatur to allow them to automatically switch power between two circuits should an outage occur. The power lines will now utilize the capability of Ameren's IntelliRupter, which senses the condition of the electric system and can determine appropriate switching actions to reduce the number of customers affected by an outage. Officials say about 3,000 customers will benefit from the changes.
Ameren Illinois also replaced more than 70 power poles along a three-mile stretch of Wyckles Road. Officials say the poles are designed to better withstand high winds, and will improve reliability for nearly 200 customers.
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