Ameren installs smart switch in St. Charles to cut outages

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - People in St. Charles could soon see fewer electrical outages, even during storms.

Ameren is installing a smart switch Thursday morning that will provide greater reliability for nearly 2,000 customers.

The device can more rapidly detect and isolate damage and reroute power.

An Ameren spokesperson says the smart switch can sometimes reduce the time it takes for power to be restored in a home from hours to seconds.

Ameren has installed more than 1,500 smart switches throughout Missouri since 2018.