Ugly Beauty

In newer developments and major arteries with subways running beneath, utility lines have been buried. But in tiny back streets where municipal redevelopment projects are rare, utility lines remain on poles.

In most places I would call them ugly, but the Japanese manage to make an art of them. Firstly, they are not covered with black tar that seeps from North American poles made from trees. They almost always use concrete, aluminum, and steel. Secondly, there are very few, if any, posters. While this makes for cool urban art is some American cities, it is more often a location for exotic diets and a place to earn college diplomas in six months.

Since utility poles do not necessarily carry all lines in the United States (some are buried under existing poles), they seem less wired than Japan. Here, utility poles are bursting with wires. It is hard to believe they stand during windstorms and earthquakes. Something must be right.

I wonder if the Japanese fear broken underground pipes more than falling electrical lines in a natural disaster. Given the current state of infrastructure spending (ridiculously high), they will likely continue to bury these lines in Japan.