Round here although properties are served by poles the connection from the poles goes underground to the street cabinet. The only places I have seen cabling totally supplied by poles is in country areas and even then it disappears underground at some point to connect to the main trunk lines. I am surprised there are manholes in the road the vast majority are usually in the pavement perhaps the manhole ended in the road following a road widening. Even Virgin extending their network in the vicinity were forced to dig a trench along a road but the manholes ended up at either end in the footpath.

Richard