The framework is in place to provide high-speed internet services to government and educational institutions. Now the focus is on increasing that number online and, in turn, improving the connectivity of individual homeowners.
The state’s effort to build a fiber-optic network between government sites began a decade ago. There have been delays and budget-busting problems, but this summer the final hub in western Kentucky went live. Greg Gatson, chief operating officer of the Kentucky Communications Network Authority, said there are interconnection sites in every county.
“Not only do you have to build to the end customer, but you also potentially have to travel dozens, if not hundreds, of miles or more to get back to a connection point to the Internet,” Gatson said.
There is still a lot of work to be done to connect individual homes to high-speed service. And there are still government facilities, including educational institutions, that are not connected. Gatson said four customers in Western Kentucky switched to the system last week.
While nearly 500 agencies have already switched to the system, many more are expected to join. Doug Hendrix, executive director of the Kentucky Communications Network Authority, said this state program is not focused on individual households.
“I get emails occasionally saying, ‘I want to connect my house. I’m in Olive Hill.’ I’ll say, ‘I can’t connect your house. Talk to your local ISP.’ But we know people can’t wait,” Hendrix said.
Hendrix noted that there is progress in connecting homes to the middle-mile system, but he acknowledged that it takes time. Hendrix added that businesses of all sizes need to have high-speed internet. Hendrix said there are about 58,000 fiber optic towers across the Commonwealth.
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