How Does That Work?

Infographic: Anatomy of a power pole

Everywhere you look, power poles help guide electricity from OPPD’s generating stations to your home and community.

Utility poles support the wires that transmit and distribute electricity throughout eastern Nebraska and beyond. They also hold important safety features and equipment to adjust electrical voltage to an appropriate level for your home, school and business.

OPPD has 229,035 wooden distribution poles, 7,163 wooden transmission poles and 4,445 steel transmission poles throughout its service territory.

Every pole is buried deep in the ground for stability and is strong enough to stand on its own, barring extreme weather conditions or a major impact. Guy wires connected to the ground help support the weight of power lines.

Attached to the power poles are porcelain or polymer insulators to keep electricity from flowing to undesired places. Fused cutouts act like a circuit breaker, isolating the tap line from the main line. They also protect equipment from electrical surges and overloads.

The big, gray attachments that look like a bucket are transformers. They reduce the voltage in the lines to a safe level that customers can use, such as 120 or 240 volts. The main line neutral wire is a neutral conductor in a distribution circuit. Service drop wires carry current to customers.

A pole ground wire runs down the pole, connected to a metal rod that runs eight feet into the ground to disperse any errant electricity from lightning safely into the ground.

Check out the infographic below to learn more.