The race to roll out fibre broadband has led to road repair shortcuts by telecoms companies, according to a report from the Scottish roads authorities.
The Roads Authorities and Utilities Committee for Scotland (RAUCS) found that BT and Virgin Media faired particularly poorly in a report that investigates the quality of road repairs after work undertaken by utilities companies.
The report said 26% of the repairs carried out by utility companies weren’t up to scratch, compared to 37% of repairs done by ISPs showing signs of deterioration after cable had been installed.
BT repairs were subject to 204 post-work checks, and failed in 75 cases, while Virgin saw 33 of its 89 repair work examinations end in failure.
“Roads authorities accept the need for utility companies to undertake works in the road, but expect it to be properly reinstated afterwards,” said David Armitage, co-chairman of RAUCS.
The roads authorities have the power to issue £50,000 fines to utility companies that continue to leave roads in an unacceptable state. We are waiting for responses from both BT and Virgin.
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