West Otago Community Board member John Herbert said at a board meeting on Wednesday, the holes had appeared in Shanks Rd outside Heriot a few months ago exposing the fibre-optic cables laid underneath.
He said Chorus, which owned the cables, had not filled in the holes despite requests from the community board to do so.
There was a risk to road users as well as the cable itself.
It could cost ''over $10,000'' to replace or repair the cables if they were ever damaged from being exposed to the elements, Mr Herbert said.
It would be better to cover the holes before any long-lasting damage could be done.
A spokesman for Chorus said the holes often appeared when water underneath the cables undermined the ''lay-line''.
As soon as the company was alerted to such issues it fenced off the holes or marked them with cones to stop people, vehicles or stock getting into trouble.
Chorus took health and safety very seriously, he said.
Contractors were in discussions with the Clutha District Council about how to fix the holes and ensure there was not a repeat event.
Chorus was working to fix the issue as soon as possible, he said.
Council service delivery group manager Jules Witt said the repairs had to be done by Chorus because of the potential to damage to expensive cables.
From the council's perspective the holes needed to be fixed quickly because they were a safety issue, Mr Witt said.
