In 2017 burying electric lines cost 3 times as much as running them overhead from poles. It’s also more difficult and time consuming to isolate problems or breaks, and then to dig them up, repair them, and re-bury them especially in rugged terrain; typically, this takes place during an emergency and is paid out in overtime. For most of our grid, it makes more economic sense to keep the lines on poles, even though they are more vulnerable to trees falling and squirrels. Now when cables are undergrounded, they are run through conduit to help protect them from accidental damage and corrosion.
