Suffolk Authority replaces 2,400 feet of Shirley water main

The Suffolk County Water Authority completed a major water main replacement in Shirley on Jan. 15, 2026, removing roughly 2,400 feet of aging transite pipe along Floyd Road and nearby streets and installing modern ductile iron pipe. The work is intended to cut down on main breaks, strengthen distribution resilience and maintain drinking-water quality for residents in this part of the county.

SCWA officials said the project targets a stretch of distribution system that had shown the vulnerabilities common to older transite mains. The authority replaced the brittle, aging material with ductile iron, a standard chosen to reduce the frequency of failures and the need for emergency repairs. SCWA CEO Jeff Szabo said the upgrade will reduce service disruptions and strengthen distribution resiliency.

This project sits inside SCWA’s broader countywide infrastructure program, which prioritizes neighborhoods that have experienced repeat breaks or contain pipe materials known to be vulnerable. Those prioritization criteria shape which communities receive capital investments first and influence the authority’s maintenance and replacement schedule. For Shirley residents, the immediate effects should be fewer emergency outages and more predictable service while the county continues longer-term planning.

Infrastructure investments such as this carry policy and fiscal implications for local officials, ratepayers and community advocates. Replacing older mains reduces long-term maintenance costs but requires upfront capital, which the authority funds through a mix of reserves, bonds and rate revenue. Decisions about where to allocate limited capital are inherently political; they affect local service equity and the pace at which aging systems across Suffolk County are modernized. Residents and their elected representatives will likely be watching how SCWA balances urgent repairs with systemwide upgrades going forward.

Operationally, replacing transite with ductile iron brings public health and reliability benefits by lowering the risk of contamination events tied to pipe failures and by reducing the number of service interruptions that disrupt homes and businesses. For neighborhoods along Floyd Road, that translates to a more dependable tap and fewer emergency repair crews on short notice.

The Shirley replacement is one piece of the authority’s ongoing capital program to shore up Suffolk’s water infrastructure. For residents, the key takeaway is concrete: a vulnerable stretch of pipe was removed and replaced, and the authority says that should lead to fewer breaks and steadier service. As the county’s water system continues to age, continued transparency about project prioritization, funding and timelines will shape public confidence and local policymaking.