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PSA: I just learned how much old cable is still buried in New York City

I was reading a city report from last year and it said there are over 8,000 miles of abandoned copper and coaxial lines still under the streets. I always knew we were pulling new fiber past old stuff, but that number really hit me. Has anyone else come across a crazy amount of legacy cable on a job recently?
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3 Comments
gracethomas
That 8,000 mile number is low. I pulled a permit for a small conduit job in Queens last month and the city maps showed three layers of abandoned lines just on that block. The real issue is nobody wants to pay for the removal.
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charles_baker28
Sounds like a total nightmare, honestly.
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grantpatel
grantpatel26d ago
Three layers on one block? How deep do they even go before hitting bedrock? That's a crazy amount of old junk just sitting there, and you're right, the bill to pull it all would be insane.
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