The plenary session definitively approves the ordinance that will regulate telecommunications installations and cabling

The Torrevieja City Council, meeting in ordinary session yesterday afternoon, has definitively approved the Regulatory Ordinance on Telecommunications Installations in the municipality, a regulation intended to organize the deployment of networks, improve the safety of the installations and reduce the impact that the accumulation of cables, boxes and other elements causes on facades, poles and public spaces.

The ordinance regulates the urban planning, landscape, environmental and safety conditions that all telecommunications infrastructures installed in the municipality must comply with, including equipment, cabling, conduits, poles, supports and associated works.

MANDATORY REMOVAL OF DISUSED WIRING

One of the most important aspects is the obligation for operators to periodically inspect their installations and remove any cables, boxes, and accessories that are no longer in service. Furthermore, when a new installation is carried out for a user, the operator must clear the facade or the corresponding pole of any unused cabling and boxes.

Existing cabling on building facades must be neatly arranged and concealed using surface-mounted, aesthetically integrated conduits. Cables and junction boxes must be permanently labeled with the service provider's name, and service connections must be grouped together to minimize their visual impact.

The regulations also establish a preference for underground deployments over overhead ones. In the case of cabling currently in use, the City Council may promote its undergrounding or replacement through collaboration agreements with the operators and agreed-upon timelines.

GREATER SECURITY ON POLES AND OVERHEAD CROSSINGS

The installation of new cables on poles will require a certificate signed by a qualified technician guaranteeing the structural safety of the assembly. Furthermore, the operator will be responsible for maintaining the cables in suitable condition throughout their lifespan and for any damages that may result from non-compliance.

The ordinance establishes a minimum clearance of 5.5 meters for cables running parallel to urban roads and 8.5 meters when the cabling crosses public roads. For overhead crossings parallel to roads, a minimum height of 4 meters is required.

The City Council may inspect the poles and installations and order their regularization or removal when they compromise safety, fail to meet minimum heights or contain elements that no longer provide service.

MUNICIPAL REGISTRY AND INSPECTION

The ordinance provides for the creation of a municipal register of infrastructure and operators, which will allow it to know which companies operate in each area, have their contact information and report any incidents detected more quickly.

A digital inventory will also be created showing the geographical location of the main elements of the networks, facilitating coordination between the City Council and the companies in the face of municipal actions, works or problems that affect the facilities.

The penalty system includes fines of up to €750 for minor infractions, €1,500 for serious infractions, and €3,000 for very serious infractions. Among the punishable offenses are non-compliance with safety conditions, lack of maintenance, absence of required certifications, and failure to remove obsolete or dangerous installations.

The Councillor for Urban Services, Sandra Sánchez, explained during the plenary session that “this ordinance will allow the City Council to act more effectively in the face of a real and visible problem in our streets: the accumulation of cables, overloaded poles, deteriorated junction boxes, and lines that are no longer in service.” The Councillor emphasized that the new regulations offer concrete tools to require safety certificates, organize installations, remove disused elements, and hold operators accountable.

“The priority is to guarantee the safety of citizens and improve the urban image of Torrevieja, without hindering the development of modern and high-quality telecommunications networks,” said Sánchez, emphasizing that the text has solid technical and legal backing and “requires operators to do everything permitted by law, in order to have a valid, effective ordinance capable of standing up to any appeal.”

The approved text maintains all the measures that the City Council can directly implement regarding urban planning, landscape, beautification, security, and public domain management. The ordinance cannot mandate widespread undergrounding or directly compel the sharing of infrastructure, powers reserved for the State, although it can encourage voluntary agreements and request the intervention of the relevant state agency.

Following its final approval, the full text will be published in the Official Gazette of the Province and on the notice board of the municipal electronic office. The ordinance will enter into force 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette of the Province.