Telus crews were replacing six kilometres of cable last week due to damage done by resident woodpeckers.
The existing cables have been heavily damaged over the years due to the woodpeckers, Telus spokesperson Shawn Hall said, who for some reason were attracted to the phone cable, and would peck holes into it. In addition to the structural damages to the cable, these holes hold water, which then affects the condition of the connection.
“It’s become a real issue along that portion of highway,” Hall said, referring to the six kilometre stretch just west of Houston, just three minutes out of town.
The new cable, with a price tag of $130,000, is double-armoured, so they shouldn’t have this problem in the future. Telus has been receiving some complaints of static in the lines as well as degraded high speed internet connections, which they expect this repair to clear up.
They’re having a similar problem near Hazelton, Hall reported, so in the next month crews will be heading out to replace those lines as well.