Conduit Systems and Manholes

Conduit Systems and Manholes are underground telecommunications infrastructure providing protected pathways for fiber optic cables and access points for installation, maintenance, and future capacity expansion. Conduit—typically high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or PVC pipe—protects fiber from environmental damage, excavation accidents, and rodent intrusion while enabling cable replacement or augmentation without new construction.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act requires BEAD-funded projects laying fiber or conduit underground to "include interspersed conduit access points at regular and short intervals" (47 U.S.C. § 1702(h)(4)(D)). The SUCCESS for BEAD Act further identifies conduit systems and manholes as explicitly eligible for BEAD remaining amounts, recognizing that excess conduit capacity deployed during initial construction creates long-term value by enabling future fiber additions without repeated excavation costs.

Strategic conduit deployment along transportation corridors, utility rights-of-way, and critical infrastructure routes creates a durable physical layer that outlasts the fiber cables running through it—conduit installed today may serve multiple generations of transmission technology over 50+ year lifespans. Manholes provide the access points where technicians can pull new cables, splice connections, and perform maintenance without surface excavation, reducing both operational costs and traffic disruption throughout the infrastructure lifecycle.