Who protects old poles? Hydro’s keeping it secret
When it comes to playing nice with “third parties” that are making it look bad, Toronto Hydro takes the cake.
It refuses to identify telecom providers that are adding to lengthy delays in removing a huge number of old utility poles from city streets, or even reveal what authority it has to resolve the problem.
We’ve been writing about the vast number of decommissioned utility poles that have been sawed off near the top and are still standing next to their new replacements. They’re a sore point for many people, especially poles that have languished for years. They add to street clutter and create the perception that Hydro, which is responsible for them, can’t be bothered to finish what it started.
When we first asked about them, Hydro said third-party telecom providers still have wires and equipment attached to many of the old poles, which is why they have yet to be taken down. We pressed for details, but Hydro said further questions had to be submitted in writing.
So we submitted lots of questions, including asking about the identity of the third parties and what authority it has — if any — to order them to remove their equipment.
It took nearly two weeks, but Hydro finally responded. And you aren’t going to like the answers any better than we did.
Incredibly, Hydro says it “has identified 1,400 decommissioned poles that are ready to be removed, and will be addressing the majority of these in the coming months, and into 2017.”
Here’s the reply to our request for the identities of these third parties: “Due to confidentiality terms, we cannot name these third parties, however, typical third parties would include telecommunications companies, other utilities and municipality-owned equipment.”
What’s the big secret? Doesn’t the public have any right to know?
We also asked if Hydro has authority to order third parties to remove their equipment and if it has exercised that authority. “Toronto Hydro has terms with respect to third-party attachments transferring/removing their equipment from decommissioned poles, however, these terms are confidential.”
Apparently, taxpayers have no right to that information, at least when the Star asks the questions.
Among the many emails from readers about the issue, one came from Bruce Thorburn about poles that were decommissioned in 2013 but have yet to be taken down. “All my responses from Hydro refer to foreign attachments as the reason for the delay,” said Thorburn. “Rogers and Bell were the foreigners mentioned, and that they have180 days after notice to remove their attachments.”
Couldn’t Hydro have told us the same thing? Tomorrow: Hydro explains why it would rather “play nice in the sandbox” with telecoms that are playing it for a sucker, rather than kick their asses. What’s broken in your neighbourhood? Wherever you are in Greater Toronto, we want to know. To contact us, go to thestar.com/ yourtoronto/the_fixer or call us at 416-8694823 or email jlakey@thestar.ca. To read our blog, go to thestar.com/news/the_fixer. Report problems and follow us on Twitter @TOStarFixer.