Well there are quite a lot of people here who are fed up with the appalling mess they make while they are doing the work and feel the same about the state of the footpaths after it is finished. Paved paths are simply filled in with tarmac not re-instated and grass verges are left muddy with no grass left. I know this work is intrusive and certainly some of the contractors have been accommodating in allowing access but by no means all, but the paths are NOT being re-instated as they were before and to my mind they should have been. If it's paved then re-pave it, if it's tarmac then use the same colour tarmac (not all our pavements are black tarmac) and if it's concrete then re-concrete. They really should leave it so their work is almost invisible.
Stuart
***WARNING non-directed rant incoming***
The national requirement for utilities is that they re-instate where they have worked (the trench/excavation only) with like for like material. Tarmac for tarmac, slabs for slabs, brick sets for brick sets etc.. Tarmac fades overtime from the normal dark black to a grey black colour and there is nothing that can be done to stop this. Once any new tarmac reinstatement is carried out it WILL stand out as it's fresh. The trench lines are often not dead straight as the utilities have to work around other apparatus beneath the surface. There are standards that need to be accounted for with any reinstatement and if they aren't to specification then they will be defected by a highway authority accordingly.
Other materials can be used with agreement of the local highway authority. Some highway authorities replace damaged slabs with tarmac as it's a more flexible and easier material to maintain. This can also be extended out to a utility in a similar fashion, damaged/cracked slabs replaced with tarmac. Obviously if undamaged slabs are being removed/cut through then this is also an issue that is taken up with by the highway authorities and can be defected against a reinstatement.
Grassed verges/areas should normally be cleared of any debris (stone/chippings etc..) and levelled before they are seeded to allow the grass to re-grow. Weather is an obvious factor for delaying or disrupting this process. It's a misconception that utilities have to instantly re-turf grassed areas and I've never known this to have happened once. If a grassed area is not dealt with (even if the weather is not an impacting factor) then it can be defected and dealt with in normal process of dealing with utility defects.
It doesn't help that some people complain of muddy verges because of utility works and yet right next to the site there are people parking their cars on the verge, or over running the verges/footway to illegally access off road parking without a proper vehicle crossing. Also, if there are muddy verges, TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES before you walk into your house. How is it a third parties fault that you walk mud into your house when normal people would take of their shoes!!
***Rant over***