City Utilities of Springfield, Mo., is increasing its investment in electric system reliability in fiscal year 2026, dedicating nearly $10 million to tree trimming and pole replacement efforts to help ensure safe and reliable power for the community.
The increased funding builds on another strong year of reliability improvements. In fiscal year 2025, CU trimmed trees along approximately 103 miles of electric lines to remove vegetation that can lead to outages during storms. The utility also replaced 1,075 electric poles—an increase from 681 poles replaced the previous year.
These proactive investments help reduce outage frequency and duration, improving overall service reliability for customers.
In fiscal year 2025, CU also invested $4 million in improvements to convert overhead electric lines to underground service as part of municipal projects, which included the Grant Parkway development and the Renew Jordan Creek project. The utility continues to budget for and evaluate opportunities to bury electric lines strategically, particularly in new developments, based on cost and feasibility considerations. The estimated cost to bury electric lines for the entire community is approximately $3 billion.
“The cost to bury electric lines for the entire system is extremely high,” said Rob Guiler, Director of Electric Transmission and Distribution. “This is a cost burden that the utility does not want to pass on to customers. We believe our customers see the best value in our tree management and pole replacement efforts for added reliability.”
In addition to utility-led improvements, customers can enhance reliability on their own property by planting trees and vegetation away from power lines, it noted.
CU is encouraging customers to follow the “right tree, right place” approach when landscaping near electric infrastructure. "Always be aware of electric lines before planting trees and check the size at maturity to ensure they will not interfere with electric equipment."
