Rochester Gas and Electric Corp. will begin its annual safety survey of natural gas service lines next week in parts of the city and several area towns.

This year's survey will include gas lines in the City of Rochester north of Lyell Avenue and north of East Main Street. In the suburbs and surrounding region, RG&E will inspect lines in all or parts of Gates, Penfield, Greece, Webster, Hilton, LeRoy, Geneseo, Byron, Stafford, Marion, Walworth, Bergen, Clarkson and Pavilion.

Abut 85,000 customer gas service lines will be inspected.

To perform a proper inspection, a worker must walk on customers' property and use hand-held detection equipment. All inspectors will carry RG&E identification badges. It is usually not necessary for a worker to enter a customer's home to complete the inspection. If such access is required, workers, of course, will ask for the homeowner's permission.

Through annual surveys, RG&E inspects its entire gas system every three to five years.