Heavy equipment will arrive at Falkenburg Road and Woodberry Road beginning Monday, Oct. 5, for the next phase of the South Hillsborough Pipeline.

Cranes, excavators, control trailers and pipe materials will be delivered throughout the week to the site on the northeast corner of the intersection, just behind the Circle K gas station, according to the project's website.

From there, crews will bore a microtunnel beneath Falkenburg Road, heading west to Hillsborough County-owned property.

Residents near the site can expect construction noise and activity from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Brief traffic delays on Woodberry Road are possible during deliveries, but no long-term road closures are planned. Access to surrounding homes and businesses will remain open.

Crews will tunnel beneath Falkenburg Road to limit traffic impacts

The Falkenburg Road crossing is one of 17 tunnel locations along the 26-mile pipeline route, according to Tampa Bay Water's tunneling overview.

Microtunneling uses a remote-controlled boring machine to excavate underground while crews simultaneously install steel casing pipe behind it.

About 2 miles of the pipeline route are being built using tunneling methods, allowing crews to pass beneath roads and waterways without excavating them from the surface.

Woodberry Road between Falkenburg Road and Lakewood Drive reopened Aug. 25 after crews completed separate microtunneling work beneath Lakewood Drive.

Open-trench construction along Woodberry Road is scheduled to begin in mid-2027 and last about one year.

26-mile pipeline will carry up to 65 million gallons of water a day

Tampa Bay Water is building the pipeline to carry up to 65 million gallons of drinking water per day to fast-growing southern Hillsborough County.

The pipeline will run about 26 miles from the Tampa Bay Regional Surface Water Treatment Plant in Brandon to the Lithia Water Treatment Plant and a planned water treatment facility in the Balm area. The pipe will be up to 5 feet in diameter.

Garney is serving as construction manager at risk for the project.

Maribel Medina, a Tampa Bay Water communications representative, wrote in a Sept. 2 op-ed in the Osprey Observer that "the pipeline design includes 17 tunnel locations to minimize impacts to roadways and waterways."

Medina added that construction-related detours and closures are reported to navigation apps including Waze and Google Maps.

Pipeline scheduled to begin service by the end of 2028

The South Hillsborough Pipeline is expected to be in service by the end of 2028, according to Medina's op-ed.

The project is designed to accommodate continued population growth in southern Hillsborough County. Apollo Beach's population is projected to double by 2050, while Wimauma's population is expected to more than triple, according to the project overview.

Construction is taking place at multiple locations along the route using tunneling, horizontal directional drilling and open-trench installation.

Residents with questions can contact the South Hillsborough Pipeline project at (813) 485-6480 or [email protected].