A water main leak forced the closure of two of three westbound lanes on State Road 580 across from Countryside Mall in north Clearwater on Aug. 19, and no reopening timeline has been set.
Pinellas County crews began work on the underground leak at noon Wednesday, according to the Clearwater Police Department, which relayed the county's announcement on its official Facebook page. County officials said the lanes would remain closed for "an indeterminate time," Bay News 9 reported.
One westbound lane remains open. Both the county and Clearwater Police urged westbound motorists to use alternate routes.
SR 580 is one of north Clearwater's busiest east-west corridors and serves as an alternate route when the Courtney Campbell Causeway is closed, according to iontb.com. Losing two of three westbound lanes during an open-ended repair creates a bottleneck for commuters, shoppers heading to Countryside Mall and drivers connecting to U.S. 19.
Pinellas County has not identified the cause of the leak or released a repair timeline. No specific detour has been officially designated.
Residents can check the Clearwater Police Department's Facebook page and Pinellas County's website for updates. As of Aug. 20, the lanes remain closed with no repair schedule announced by the county.
