[mje__]

It seems one of the biggest costs of fiber is installation; i.e. trenching. Why is it not hung from poles? It must be much cheaper and quicker, surely?

[liotier]

Yes, whereas Europe puts everything underground, US operators will go cheap and string stuff across poles. My supplier of infrastructure management software was astonished when they saw at our data an realized we have almost no aerial spans in France.

[wmf]

Where poles exist, fiber is run on them. Where utilities are underground, fiber is underground.