Residents' anger over broadband poles installation

Residents in part of Leeds have spoken of their anger at what they have described as "unsightly" poles being installed on their streets by a broadband provider.

People living in the affected areas of Garforth - where there were previously no poles - have set up a petition against the work, and that has so far gained over 430 signatures.

Local resident Grace Feeney, 36, said: "We're going to boycott the service. No-one wants it. We have people ready to park cars to stop the poles going up".

The company behind the poles, Giggle Fibre, has been approached for comment, but previously said running its cables underground was not possible and using telegraph poles had a lesser environmental impact.

Ms Feeney explained: "In some parts of the country, telegraph wires are not uncommon.

"But Garforth was built as an open estate, and the idea was that everything would be underground, so it tended not to have overhead cables.

"People have seen some very heavy cables go up already - and one telegraph pole with 20 wires coming out."

Ms Feeney said a petition she had set up where she lived on Acaster Drive had so far been signed by people from 50 out of the 96 households on the road.

She said: "It's a nice street that backs on to the greenbelt. They're hideous wires.

"If we manage to avoid it on our street we'll be happy, but we want to help other people avoid it."

While Giggle Fibre has yet to give a comment to the BBC, the firm has previously responded to concerns in a letter to people living in the area following a meeting with Labour MP for Leeds East Richard Burgon.

In the letter, the company said it had "considered all available options to minimise disruption while ensuring reliable and future-proof connectivity".

It added that in some places it had managed to share infrastructure with telecom company Openreach, but much of the underground networks were outdated and unable to be shared.

"Much of the existing underground network in East Garforth, which was installed in the 1970s, consists of direct buried cables without suitable ducting," it said.

Burgon said: "Ever since the estate was first built there, there have never been telegraph poles in that area.

"People enjoy that element of it and being able to see the full sky, and they should be allowed to continue to do so."

Burgon said that although planning permission was not needed to install the poles, there were laws in place which stated that companies doing so should work with local residents and take their views into consideration.

"I have been putting to the company the concerns and demands of local residents in no uncertain terms, but they are pressing ahead," the MP said.

While Burgon said he had asked the company to halt the work, Garforth resident Lisa Lambert said one of the new poles was still being installed this week outside East Garforth station.

She said poles had already been erected in the Montague Crescent area and around Braemar Drive, Derwent Avenue, Richmond Way and Paddock Close.

Burgon said: "What we want is for the community to be treated with respect and consideration.

"Giggle Fibre, and any broadband company that uses their telegraph poles, should expect a big boycott from local residents."

A public meeting about the installation of the broadband poles was due to be held at Firthfields Community Centre at 20:00 GMT on Tuesday.

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