Working near underground cables

Our high voltage underground cables supply electricity to urban areas such as Sydney. They can be located under public roadways, council parks, private property and government corporation land.

During the planning phase of your project, you must check whether underground cables are in the vicinity so that you can take appropriate action to avoid damage to these assets.

The industry code of practice for Work Near Underground Assets- Guide is available on the Safe Work NSW website.

Download Working With Underground Cables Guidelines.

Underground cable easements

A ‘Before You Dig’ search via www.byda.com.au is essential prior to any excavation works.

Transgrid has prepared the Requirements for Working in the Vicinity of Transgrid Underground Cables to help you understand the process for working safely near high voltage underground lines.

Transgrid is a registered member of Before You Dig Australia (BYDA) - a free national service that helps property owners and contractors avoid damage to underground cables when carrying out construction work.

How to use this service

We have supplied Dial Before You Dig with information on our underground cable routes.  

If you are planning underground works, contact Dial Before You Dig on 1100 (toll free) or via the online enquiry portal, providing:

• the location of the work
• type of construction activity (e.g. mechanical excavation, boring, drilling, landscaping)
• details of the contract

Dial Before You Dig will pass your enquiry to us, and we will respond within two working days.

Our responses are now automated and dispatched within a couple of hours.

When necessary, we can provide a safety observer at no cost to advise and monitor work methods when construction takes place near our cables (depending on the type and location of the asset).

Different requirements apply to work taking place near transmission line easements. Learn more about our Easement Guidelines.