Utility work begins for Old Orchard-Savannah realignment

Utility crews have been removing trees and relocating power lines at the Savannah Road-Wescoats Road intersection to make way for the Old Orchard Road realignment project. As work progresses, Delmarva Power officials say they will have to cut power from midnight to 4 a.m., Thursday, Oct. 5, to relocate a transmission line on Savannah Road. The outage will affect all Lewes Board of Public Works customers. The BPW purchases electricity from Delmarva Power.

Contractors working on the first phase of relocation include Wright Traffic Control of Beaver Falls, Pa., C.J. Drilling of East Greenwich Township, N.J., and Riggs Distler of Cherry Hill, N.J.

The Delaware Department of Transportation project includes realignment of Old Orchard Road with Wescoats Road at Savannah Road. The current Old Orchard intersection at Savannah Road will be abandoned. A four-way signalized intersection with Savannah, Old Orchard and Wescoats roads will be constructed. In addition, the project includes realignment and a roundabout at the Wescoats, Clay and Marsh roads intersection. The project also includes pedestrian and bicycle crossings, intersection improvements along existing Old Orchard Road and access to the Lewes-to-Georgetown Trail.

The work is expected to be completed in 2026.