Ugly, annoying overhead utility lines

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Do I get any say in where lines for telpephone, cable tv, and electricty pass on their way to other people's homes?

I live in densely populated city. Our lots here are shaped like ribbons. 200 feet long, 25 feet wide. The main utility lines run on poles in the back alley.
I have two lines running to my house cutting diagonally along my back yard to the back of the house. One neighbor has two lines which also cut across my yard. The houses sit toward the front of the lots and are one story, so these are some long, low hanging lines.

The newest neighbors, who moved in over the weekend, have only an electric line, which runs right over our fence line. In fact my viburnum shrub is about to grow up to it. I imagine these folks will put in a phone line and perhaps cable. I wish I did not have to put up with other people's utility lines coming over or edging my property. It is ugly and it limits what I can grow and how I must prune. My own are ugly and imposing enough!

Somebody told me that they can't believe how many connection points the utilities have coming from their main lines. He said they are "supposed" to have cluster points where many houses are connected to the same splice area. So technically, maybe the utility companies are already doing what they can to get lines more out of the neighbors' "airspace."

But what do you think? If the cable and phone companies come to add lines to the house next door, should I be able to persuade them not to hang the lines over my yard, but over the yard of the house to be served? Do I have any "airspace rights?"

[PrincessPerky]

Ours are all underground..though they rip up the yard to put new stuff in they always put it back and sometimes even reseed..which would amount to more grass than before they ripped up! (I have a terrible yard)

I would think there aught to be something you can do...but not sure what...pester the city council for underground lines?

[Gruntina]

We live in the mountains so we really have that awful problems with cables hanging over properties and they are a site for sore eyes.

Underground cable is a big issue here. So many people had to replace their cables because it gets chewed up by squirrels and their phone and internet line disconnect. I fell off the chair when they told me the cost to replace them.

I am sure there is better technology to disguise them or use some form of pipes that does not rust or corrode so fast.

However if the over ground cables are there, I think it just not cost effective for the city to replace them to underground as it would be very expensive and a time consuming project that will affect the community.

I would think it would require a petition of the community and possibly a tax percentage or something to get that changed.

[Scanner]

Get politically involved.

[Fern]

My neighborhood is an older one with overhead lines. I am guessing that typically the homeowner doesn't have a say in where lines go becus these lines probably occupy some sort of easement. With the overhead lines on my property, near the road, the town/state actually owns 15 feet of land in from the road, for maintenance issues, even tho for all intents and purposes the land is treated as if i own it.

However, if you feel like you're looking out at spaghetti, i think you should definitely look into who to talk to and make a case for these lines aesthetically devaluing your home vale and your ability to enjoy it. Maybe you can make a case for it.