Before 5G can come to New York, the city will have to speed up the process of granting access to light and traffic poles, which will be crucial parts of the 5G infrastructure in the areas of greatest demand. This is the complaint several telecommunications companies have been making in recent weeks, as they wait for the city to help them lay the new network's groundwork. The poles have other demands on them: They also are used by the police and the Department of Transportation for cameras and traffic monitoring, and they become available through a bidding process only during reservation periods designated by the city. "The current reservation periods have not kept up with wireless data demand," said a spokeswoman for Crown Castle. "We need to move wireless infrastructure forward so that New York City can be a leader."