Daytime water main construction efforts in Norwich, which began on Wednesday morning, temporarily closed part of the northbound lane on South Broad Street. (Photo by Tyler Murphy)

NORWICH – The City of Norwich moved its water main replacement project to the daytime starting on Wednesday, July 5, after almost a month’s work during the nighttime.

While the project, which began on June 12, was scheduled to take place overnight from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., it will now occur between 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday through Thursday each week, said Department of Public Works Superintendent Edward Pepe.

Although most work will take place during the day and require traffic detours, according to a release posted on Facebook by the City of Norwich late Wednesday morning, there will be nighttime work between Hayes and Main Street, a comment made by the city in the post said.

Traffic in the northbound lane on South Broad Street, or State Route 12, will be redirected along Prentice Street to avoid the construction zone, according to the post. Cars will then turn right onto Hale Street, left onto County Road 32 and left onto State Highway 320 to reach back to State Route 12.

The city also created an alternate detour for trucks, which starts at County Road 32B and intersects with the rest of traffic at the County Road 32A and County Road 32 intersection.

Pepe said the New York State Department of Transportation required the contractor to work overnight when constructing underneath the main street traffic light. He said they switched to daytime construction due to the contractor’s work preference.

“The contractor believes they can work faster during the day– they've always wanted to do the day work, so that's the main reason,” he said.

The project is currently projected to be “substantially complete” by the city’s contract end date on August 31, Pepe said. To reach “total completion,” additional work may be necessary, he said.

Pepe advised community members to follow the detour and minimize the need for travel in the direction of the construction and detour if possible. He said his department will adjust detours accordingly to streamline traffic formation.

“Today was the first day, so I’m hoping that things get better, and if not, then we might have to make some modifications to adjust it so that the traffic flow is staying steady.”