Charlottesville, VA... October 16, 2025... Rivanna Water & Sewer Authority will begin work on the Central Water Line Project next week. Construction will start on Lewis St and proceed north towards UVA. Residents living along the pipeline’s path should expect some traffic delays, construction noise, and possible sidewalk detours. 

The Central Water Line Project will improve the Urban Area Drinking Water System by installing a finished water transmission pipe through the southern and central portions of Charlottesville. It will be constructed of 24-inch and 30-inch ductile iron pipes and span approximately five miles. The new finished water transmission pipe will connect transmission main pipes from both the South Rivanna Water Treatment Plant and Observatory Water Treatment Plant to allow for better water flow through our community’s systems while providing a backup path for water to travel should another finished water transmission pipe break. This project marks a significant endeavor that will provide immediate benefits upon completion for current and future generations.

Phase 1 which spans from Hereford Drive to 10th St NE will be broken into nine different construction stages. The stages are intended to provide local residents and commuters with an estimated timeframe for when work will be performed. 

General working hours will occur Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Some night work will be required at the Fontaine Ave & Lewis St intersection, the Cherry Ave & Ridge St intersection, and the 10th St NE & E Market St intersection. 

Access to businesses and private property will be provided at all times during the construction. Temporary steel plates will be on-site to facilitate vehicle travel. At the end of each day, all trenched areas will be either backfilled or covered with said steel plates. Patch paving will occur regularly with permanent paving occurring every 60 days. 

RWSA's contractor is expected to begin on Stage 1 in late-October. Construction will start on Lewis St near the railroad tracks and progress north towards UVA. The contractor plans to use a convoy method to excavate dirt, lay pipe, and then backfill. All equipment will work in a single file line with excavators and dump trucks positioned at either end of the construction zone. This method will minimize any potential road closures and allow traffic to pass.

For more information about the project and to sign up for regular updates, please visit https://rivannawater.org/central-water-line-project/ Interested individuals may also watch a recording of RWSA's public information session held on September 16, 2025, that discusses the project.

The Central Water Line is one of several projects currently under construction by RWSA. Over the next five years, RWSA will invest more than $300 million to enhance our urban raw water storage capabilities, raw water transmission pipelines, and transmission pipelines for finished water (treated drinking water). The purpose of these projects is to improve the capacity, redundancy, and resiliency of our drinking water systems. Doing so will help prevent unplanned outages and ensure residents have a constant, reliable, clean supply of water at their tap.