What does digging a cable trench cost per metre?

Digging a cable trench of 0.60 by 0.30 metres by hand costs 18 euros per linear metre in light ground at Spitforce, 33 euros in heavy ground and 67 euros in obstructed ground with rubble, stones or tree roots. Prices exclude VAT and include backfill and compaction.

Why does the price differ per soil type?

Because output per hour differs. In sand a digger achieves roughly four metres per hour, in clay about two, and in ground with rubble, stones or roots about one. The soil type therefore directly determines how many man-hours a metre of trench costs.

What happens if the ground is heavier than agreed?

Work is stopped at that point, reported with a photograph and a measurement before digging on, and reclassified by agreement. If no approval follows within the agreed window, work continues at an hourly rate. There is never an after-the-fact variation invoice for metres already closed.

Why does a cable trench have to be dug by hand?

Inside the risk zone around existing cables and pipes, the Dutch CROW 500 guideline requires careful excavation. In practice that means digging by hand. Outside that zone, machine excavation is faster and cheaper.

Rates

What does digging a trench cost per metre?

Between € 18 and € 67 per linear metre, depending on the soil. Below is exactly where that difference comes from, what is and is not included, and what happens if the ground turns out worse.

The price depends on how many metres a digger achieves per hour, and that varies by a factor of four between soil types. Hence three classes rather than one average that leaves everyone unhappy.

Loose, dry sandy soil — Sand, sandy ground, loose garden soil, unpaved

Heavy, compacted clay soil — Sandy clay, clay, peat, wet or compacted ground

Ground with rubble and stones — Rubble, stones, tree roots, old foundations, cable bundles

Base rate per linear metre · trench 0.60 m deep × 0.30 m wide
Class	Soil type	Recognisable by	Output	Per m¹
1 — Light	Sand, sandy ground, loose garden soil, unpaved	Dry, loose, falls off the spade	± 4 m¹/hour	€ 18
2 — Heavy	Sandy clay, clay, peat, wet or compacted ground	Sticks to the spade, has to be cut loose	± 2 m¹/hour	€ 33
3 — Obstructed	Rubble, stones, tree roots, old foundations, cable bundles	Every metre costs tool changes and muscle	± 1 m¹/hour	€ 67

All amounts excluding VAT. Includes digging, backfilling with the excavated material and compaction.

Dimensions

Other depths or widths

The base rate applies to 0.60 by 0.30 metres. Where the trench differs, the factor below applies to the rate of the relevant class.

Factor on the base rate
Dimension	Typically used for	Factor
0.40 m deep × 0.30 m	Telecom and data, shallow garden cabling	× 0.75
0.60 m deep × 0.30 m	Low voltage, standard house connection	× 1.00
0.80 m deep × 0.30 m	Gas, and wherever the grid operator requires deeper	× 1.30
1.00 m deep × 0.30 m	Crossings, deeper-lying routes	× 1.60
Width 0.40 m	Several ducts or cables side by side	× 1.25
Width 0.50 m	Bundles, or where work has to be done inside the trench	× 1.50

Factors are cumulative: a trench 0.80 m deep and 0.40 m wide in class 2 comes to € 33 × 1.30 × 1.25 = € 53.63 per linear metre.

Surcharges

What is charged separately

Everything not in the base rate is listed here with an amount against it. So you know up front where a quotation can land, rather than afterwards.

Surcharges and variations
Item	Explanation	Rate
Paving or block paving	Lifting, stacking separately and relaying afterwards	€ 12 / m¹
Asphalt or concrete	Sawing and breaking out; reinstatement by a specialist	on request
Trial trench	At a crossing or where the position is unclear, per CROW 500	€ 85 each
Removal of surplus soil	Including transport and disposal of clean soil	€ 28 / m³
Supplying backfill sand	Where the excavated material is unsuitable for backfill	€ 42 / m³
Rush	Start within five working days of instruction	+ 20 %
Evening, weekend or public holiday	Work outside regular hours on request	+ 35 %
Minimum order	Per instruction, regardless of route length	25 m¹ or € 450

Worked example

What a price looks like

A 120-metre fibre route along a back path: 70 metres of sand under paving, 40 metres of clay, and 10 metres alongside an old foundation.

Example calculation · 120 m¹, trench 0.60 × 0.30 m
Line	Quantity	Rate	Amount
Class 1 — sand	70 m¹	€ 18	€ 1,260
Class 2 — clay	40 m¹	€ 33	€ 1,320
Class 3 — foundation	10 m¹	€ 67	€ 670
Lifting and relaying paving	70 m¹	€ 12	€ 840
Trial trench at crossing	2 units	€ 85	€ 170
Total excluding VAT			€ 4,260
Average per linear metre			€ 35.50

The agreement that matters

What if the ground turns out worse?

This is where trenching contracts founder: the ground proves heavier than at the survey and the argument starts. We settle it up front, in four rules.

The class is determined and recorded per section at the survey.
If the ground proves different, we stop work at that point and report it with a photograph and a measurement — before we dig on.
Reclassification happens by agreement, using the same class rates listed above.
No approval within the agreed window? Then we continue at an hourly rate, so the route does not sit idle.

What we do not do: send an after-the-fact variation invoice for metres that are already closed. If you can no longer verify them, you should not be billed for them either.

What the rate includes

Digging, backfilling with the excavated material, compaction, leaving the site tidy, the KLIC enquiry and locating, and contractors' all risks insurance with a KLIC clause.

What it does not include

Supplying and laying cable, duct or ducting
Reinstatement of asphalt or concrete
Removal of surplus or contaminated soil
Dewatering where the water table is high
Traffic management and permits on public land

Not seeing your situation? Send the route, we will price it up and you will see the lines back in the quotation.

Don't work it out yourself.

Send your route and you will get a breakdown per class with every surcharge in it.

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