New push to remove potentially dangerous 'double poles' from streets

BOSTON — All along Massachusetts roadways it’s easy to see utility poles that are tipping over and have been attached to a new pole to keep them from falling into the street.  They’re known as “Double Poles”.

There is a push on Beacon Hill to pressure utility companies to comply with state law which mandates these makeshift structures be removed after 90 days.

We found an old utility pole suspended in midair along LaGrange Street in West Roxbury.  It was attached to a newer pole with some metal straps.

On Newton Street in Brookline, there is a pole that would give the Leaning Tower of Pisa a run for its money.

And right in Dedham Center, an old pole sits on a couple of wood blocks, strapped to a newer poll with some wire.

We asked Linda Farrell her review of that configuration as she walked by it with her son.  “They’re ugly.  They’re not pretty looking.  And they look kind of unsafe because you’re not too sure with one standing right next to the other and it just looks like one of them is about to fall.”

Across the state, there are about 30,000 double poles, many of which have been in place for years.

“If you can put one up, why can’t you take one down?” asked State Representative Tackey Chan of Quincy.

That’s a question he also hears from many of his constituents, including a neighborhood near Sea Street.

As he looked at one pole he said, “The reality is it’s ugly.  I mean if you look closely at one its falling apart, and at some point it’s going to be unsafe, that’s it going to rot, and fall apart on the spot and potentially cause you a public safety hazard.”

Chan has filed this bill to try and get utilities to be more responsive.

“I give them 180 days as opposed to 90 days, and then it starts an incremental penalty structure.  The longer they go, the more it is going to cost them.”

The utilities wouldn’t talk on camera, but provided a joint letter they wrote to legislative leaders.  In it, they claim they're coordinating efforts better and making headway, but also wrote:

“The urge to levy fines to attachers and pole owners may only serve to create unintended consequences and complications as pole owners and attachers shift resources from new projects to addressing the backlog of double poles to avoid fines.”

Another complication is the number of providers on each pole, such as electric, phone, cable and municipalities.  All have wires that need to be moved at the same time, requiring a high degree of coordination.
Still, Dedham resident Janet Bourgeois thinks the process should be simplified.  "If you are going to start a job, I think you need to see it all the way to the end.  You have to finish it."

To contact a utility about a pole, the best numbers are:

National Grid 1-800-322-3223
Eversouce 1-800-592-2000
Verizon 1-800-VERIZON
Unitil 1-800-301-7700

Cox Media Group