Neighbors on Martingale Drive Still Waiting on NES’s Underground Pilot

On Martingale Drive, the question is no longer whether Nashville Electric Service will bury the power lines. It is when — and why that street was chosen in the first place.

NES’s $9 million underground-powerline pilot, which includes Martingale Drive, was approved and announced in May. Since then, neighbors told WSMV they have heard almost nothing. Mike Walter, who lives on the street, put the mood in a single question: “When is it going to start and what is it going to take?” Another resident, who spoke off camera, said the only follow-up she had seen was a flyer mentioning an early-fall start. That window has come and gone.

The confusion is sharper because many Martingale Drive households say they have not had the same outage trouble that has rattled Old Hickory Village since January’s ice storm. “I don’t know why they picked us,” Walter told WSMV. “I have been here since 2010 and have not had any problems.”

NES told the station it is working on an updated construction timeline. The utility also said it is studying the cost and schedule to move all existing lines underground, with that report likely finished by early 2027. Village residents heard a broader short- and long-term plan at a Community Center meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 10 — coverage the Citizen has already published. For families on Martingale Drive, the more immediate need is simpler: a date they can mark on the calendar.

Source: WSMV.