Pole Attachment Agreement
Gridlync land and infrastructure glossary.
A pole attachment agreement lets a provider attach equipment, such as fiber or telecom lines, to poles owned by a utility or other party, in exchange for a recurring per-pole fee. Terms cover safety, access, and rate. Rates are often set by regulation or a formula based on the space the attacher occupies on the pole, and the agreement covers safety clearances, make-ready obligations, and the pole owner’s right to inspect. A single network can involve tens of thousands of attachments across utility-owned poles.
Fiber and broadband operators manage thousands of attachments with recurring fees. Gridlync tracks the agreements and payments across the network.
Example
Brightwire Fiber attaches its cable to 8,400 poles owned by Cedar Valley Electric under a pole attachment agreement at $14.50 per pole per year, with Brightwire covering any make-ready work needed to keep safe clearances.