On Friday, March 20, residents and commuters in downtown Dickson City witnessed an impressive sight: a 220-ton transformer making its way through Main Street on its journey to our Lackawanna substation. 

This delivery was the first of seven scheduled transformer transports taking place between March and June as part of our ongoing reliability upgrades throughout our 29-county service territory. These major equipment upgrades are essential to strengthening the grid and improving long-term reliability.  

In total, these deliveries will directly help improve reliability for 155,000 customers in our territory. The delivery through Dickson City alone will benefit over 36,000 customers. 

Big accommodations for big deliveries 

The sheer size of the equipment – roughly 25 feet long and 12 feet high – required a highly coordinated transport effort. Crews moved slowly through the downtown area on Friday afternoon, halting intersections and lifting utility lines where necessary to allow the oversized load to move safely to its destination. 

While the move did cause some brief traffic delays, the operation went smoothly thanks to cooperation between PPL Electric, contractors, local officials and the community. 

What does a transformer do? 

Transformers are an important part of a substation. As electricity travels, it will head to substations, where transformers will increase or decrease voltage – think “transforming” – so that it can safely travel to its next destination. 

The transformer heading to our Lackawanna substation will replace an older transformer to improve efficiency and reduce maintenance. 

Bigger. Newer. Better. 

With six additional deliveries scheduled in the coming months, customers will continue to see our investments in action. And if you see one of these transformers on the move (they’re hard to miss!), know that they’re helping move safer, more reliable power into your homes and businesses.