TOWERING SIGHT | High-voltage power transmission lines along Aguinaldo Highway in Dasmariñas, Cavite. (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — Pangasinan Rep. Ramon Guico Jr. is pushing for a measure that would require cable TV, internet, communications, and power service providers to place their distribution and transmission lines underground to avoid service disruption in critical times, particularly during calamities, and to “lessen the visual impact of urban decay.”
In House Bill No. 6487, Guico said “the march of progress should be orderly and alluring.”
“If we are to become a truly developed country, it is important that we not only perform like one, but also look like one,” Guico said.
He added that “undergrounding” distribution and transmission lines would not only beautify major roads as well as commercial and residential areas but could also raise property value and enhance service reliability.
HB 6487 would also require service providers to conduct periodic inspections of their underground facilities. The proposed measure would fine a company, which fails or refuses to comply, with P100,000 for each day of noncompliance.