Eversource Energy announced Monday that it finished installing 40 “smart switches” designed to limit the impact of power outages for 17,000 customers in western Massachusetts.Eversource spent more than $2 million to install the switches which through a computerized system locate outages, isolate the trouble spots and re-route power from other sources to the affected area. Spokesperson Priscilla Ress says the switches were recently tested near Easthampton when a tree fell onto a power line.
“As those smart switches started to work that outage within under an hour, power went from being out to 3,000 people and it was isolated down to where the actual damage occurred and that was 50 customers,” said Ress.
Over the past three years, Eversource has installed smart switches across Massachusetts and is designing the next phase of grid upgrades to be completed next year.
