DTE has been implementing a four-point plan to help provide you with more reliable power — especially during extreme weather — including trimming trees, upgrading infrastructure, rebuilding older sections of the grid and accelerating our transition to a smart grid. Since 2021, we’ve been investing more than $18 million in Downtown Ann Arbor to rebuild the infrastructure that delivers power to your local homes and businesses.
The work includes installing new poles, replacing miles of overhead and underground wires and trimming or removing trees growing close to power lines. Trimming trees is not only necessary to make room for the new equipment, but it also improves reliability for customers.
Why are you doing this work?
This work is vital because it will improve safety, electric reliability and the grid’s capacity to serve existing and new customers. It also will drive toward alignment with A2Zero goals by supporting clean energy solutions like electric vehicles.
What have you done so far?
- Inspected overhead electrical equipment, replacing and reconfiguring equipment where needed.
- Inspected over three miles of underground conduit and cables, updating equipment where necessary.
- Replaced and installed 150 new utility poles.
- Trimmed 7.4 miles of trees along the lines that deliver power to homes and businesses. Overgrown branches account for 50% of the time customers spend without power.
What are you working on now?
Our crews are working in Downtown Ann Arbor installing new poles, conductor, transformers and hardware. This work will improve safety and help ensure the lights stay on in the area around City Hall.
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- New poles and wires installed in Downtown Ann Arbor.
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- Crews working to transfer power to the new wires in Downtown Ann Arbor.
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- Crews working on the overhead lines.
We’re also restoring land around M-14 and the Kuebler Langford, Bird Hills and Hilltop Nature Areas, where we removed invasive Buckthorn that would otherwise pose a threat to the local ecosystem. Our restoration efforts also include installing drainage pipes to help prevent water from flooding the trails.
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- Restoration work in the Kuebler Langford nature preserve. Crews removed invasive buckthorn from the area and smoothed the trails.
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- New wires strung across the nature preserve. These new wires will help deliver more reliable power to residents and businesses in the area.
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- New utility poles in the Kuebler Langford nature preserve. These new poles are stronger and better able to withstand extreme weather conditions.
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- New drainage pipes installed in the Kuebler Langford nature preserve. Before, rain water would pool up and flood the trails. The new drainage system DTE installed will help keep trails from flooding.
How close are you to being done?
We expect to have the work completed and all customers on the new system by the end of the year. Once the new infrastructure is built in an area, we convert customers over to the new system. Customers will see a significant increase in reliability after this conversion. Read more about what to expect throughout this process.
Also, read about additional work happening in your area at empoweringmichigan.com/reliability-improvements.