Madison officials green-lighted this week a $20,000 study of methods by which the city could best improve pressure along the Madison-Rutledge water line in the county’s ever-growing Highway 278 corridor.

The study, which will be conducted by engineers at JJ&G, will focus on the pump station at the intersection of highways 83 and 278. According to City Manager David Nunn, Madison has responsibility for the water line from the city limits all the way out to Harris Hollis Road, where a meter measures the amount of water purchased by Rutledge from the City of Madison, and Rutledge city water lines begin.

Madison City Council member Barry Lurey asked Nunn if the City of Madison owns the line running out to Rutledge. “If it breaks today, we go out and fix it,� said Nunn. “That answers a lot of questions about who owns it. Ownership is a tricky question…[the City of Madison] controls the line.�

Nunn also pointed out that Madison’s lines to Rutledge are unique in that lines to all of the other county communities that emanate from Madison gain pressure as they move away from the city, but Rutledge lines do not. “The Atlanta Highway corridor continues to grow,â€� said Nunn. “We need to provide that minimum flow in that area.â€� The study could cost considerably less than $20,000, if engineers determine that water pressure can be improved by a series of upgrades to the existing pumps. Or specialists could come back and say that the time is now to talk about elevated storageâ€"which generates pressure in linesâ€"in that area, said Nunn.

“This study will tell us what we can do, with today’s dollars, to solve this problem,� said Nunn.

Money for any improvements called for by the engineersâ€"which could range from $100,000 for new pumps to $400,000-plus for a new water tower, is expected to come from the city’s water system capital budget. “These are system improvements, capital budget items,â€� said Nunn.Â