Eleven telecom companies - including Eircom, NTL and Esat - are currently exercising their legal right to dig up streets in the capital to install cabling networks, the Dublin city manager, Mr John Fitzgerald, has revealed. Financial charges should be levied against these firms to force them to rationalise their activities, he suggested.
Criticising the Government for putting the commercial interests of these firms before the interests of the public, he said another 34 firms are seeking the right to undertake similar roadworks.
The city manager said that at present a "free-for-all" existed where the vast majority of roadworks being carried out in the city related to telecoms.
He said many companies refused to share their networks and insisted on digging up major roads individually. The corporation had few powers to prevent this, he added.
The city manager said Government policy appeared to have an "undue concern" with protecting the firms' commercial interests and the Government had refused to consider new approaches, like charging a financial levy to telecom firms which cause traffic problems by undertaking excessive roadworks.
The Department of the Environment said last night it was "seriously considering" ways to tackle the problem, but denied the Government had been slow to take action against the operators.
Mr Fitzgerald added: "the sheer scale of the increased roadworks activity is causing major problems for the corporation." He explained that all operators are claiming the same rights to undertake roadworks as were "historically enjoyed" by Telecom Eireann (now known as Eircom).
Many of the firms were also refusing to co-operate with a corporation scheme whereby operators sell excess underground space to their competitors - thereby eliminating the need for them to undertake major roadworks, said Mr Fitzgerald.
"Legal action is imminent involving the corporation and a number of operators, which should resolve this issue," he added. The strong feelings of the city manager were expressed in a recent reply to a question from a Dublin city councillor, Mr Tommy Broughan.
The main problem, Mr Fitzgerald said, was operators did not pay for the very significant costs they imposed on others. He added only when the companies "are confronted with the full costs of the activities they undertake" would they change.
He said if charges were imposed telecom firms would share their networks and limit the amount of work they carried out. "In the corporation's view there is a clear need for new legislation to end the right telecoms operators have to undertake roadworks and to enable local authorities to impose realistic charges."
He said the corporation had been unable to convince the Departments of the Environment and Public Enterprise of the need for a new approach, such as charging operators.
A spokesman for the Department of the Environment told The Irish Times last night the matter was "being actively considered". He said it was looking at ways to reduce disruption. No one from the Department of Public Enterprise was available for comment.
The other companies cited by Mr Fitzgerald as carrying out roadworks at present are: Ocean, Global Telesystems Ireland, Eircell, Cable Management Ireland, Worldcom, Cable and Wireless, Worldwide Fibre and Colt.