A water main break caused delays on Md. 193/University Boulevard in Montgomery County, Maryland, on Friday, leading to a road closure through Saturday morning.
Work to fix the pipe finished around 6 a.m. Saturday, but some crews remained on scene to patch up the roadway. Various eastbound lanes of University Boulevard remained closed as of 11 a.m. between Piney Branch Road and Carroll Avenue, though the WTOP Traffic Center reported traffic was getting by with minimal delays.
In an alert Friday, the county told drivers to expect significant delays and seek an alternate route.
The water main break on University Blvd. will result in an extended closure until tomorrow. Eastbound is completely closed and 1 lane of westbound is closed between Piney Branch and Carroll. Expect significant delays. Seek alternate route. #MDTRAFFIC
— MC Emergency Mgmt (@ReadyMontgomery) January 31, 2020
The 12-inch break affected six customers, including one business, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission said.
The utility didn’t have a restoration time as of Friday night, but said a water station is in place for those affected. It has been set up in the parking lot of the University Boulevard Medical Plaza between Forston Street and Carroll Avenue.
Update: A water station is in place for customers impacted by the emergency water main repairs on University Blvd. in Takoma Park/Silver Spring. It is located in the parking lot of the University Blvd. Medical Plaza btwn Forston St. and Carroll Ave. from 8 p.m.-midnight.
— WSSC Water (@WSSCWaterNews) February 1, 2020
Residents nearby have endured occasional water outages in recent years as a result of leaks and breaks under University Boulevard, WTOP traffic reporter Dave Dildine said.
The same stretch of the road was closed in both directions after a portion of the main ruptured in August 2016.
WTOP Traffic Center records reveal other pipe failures east of Piney Branch Road in early February 2019 and as recently as last December. In every case, repairs required partial or complete road closures.
Below is the location of the water main break.
WTOP’s Alicia Abelson contributed to this report.
