On Thursday, January 12th, I attended an MBI conference call, and the briefing was about mapping verification. Each of the unserved and underserved towns have to verify internet coverage maps for the various services that are already available within their borders. Data that I collect from the Alford Broadband Survey (which should arrive in your postal mail soon) will help me to accurately update these maps when I receive them.
The MBI’s Community Representative Briefing was hosted by Cynthia Gaines (GIS Project Manager) and Christine Hatch (Outreach Manager). The meeting covered the State Broadband Initiative (SBI) Program, the State & National Broadband Maps and Data, the Data Verification Project, and the Role of Municipalities in Verification.
The State Broadband Initiative (SBI) is a federal grant program with participation by all 56 states and territories. The MBI was awarded $6.1 as our designated state mapping entity. Accurate information is critical for broadband planning, and the current information doesn’t accurately portray our needs in Western MA. The SBI Programs include:
- Broadband Data Collection, which consists of Broadband availability, technology & speed, as well as internet connectivity at community anchor institutions (a.k.a. town government locations).
- Broadband Mapping, dealing with the state and national broadband maps.
- Broadband Planning, handling deployment barriers & last mile analysis.
- Broadband Adoption, which collects data about computer, Internet and application usage.
The Data Collection project includes data collected from broadband service providers for wire line (Cable, DSL & Fiber optic) and wireless (Fixed, Mobile (3G/4G) & Satellite), as well as data submitted by town broadband representatives and collected from the MBI’s online broadband surveys. You can search the MA Broadband Interactive Map which focuses on technology, speed and the of providers for given areas. The National Broadband Map is information updated by the federal broadband initiative on a semi-annual basis for each state.
Of course, the MBI’s maps are more accurate and detailed for Western MA than the National Broadband Maps. The MBI needs more accurate data than what the internet providers have submitted, so they are using alternate verification sources, such as service area modeling, the MBI’s Public Broadband Survey, and community anchor institution surveys (a.k.a. our town governments).
My Tasks And Objectives
The MBI is mapping field locations of DSL remote terminals, community wire line map reviews, and verification of mobile wireless service drive studies, which I will be undertaking. For the current status on Wireline Verification, I need to verify the data submitted by internet providers (and more specific details about each of the census blocks), to map service availability by address, and to support last mile planning. This is why I decided to perform an updated Alford Broadband Survey for 2012. I will receive maps from our Regional Planning Agency, and will review and make corrections directly on the maps.
Summary Of Internet Technologies
Wireline services are provided via a physical “wired” connection. Cable (which we currently do not have) is delivered over coaxial cable television lines. Digital Subscriber Line (DSL, which is sparsely available in Alford) provides “always on” broadband service via copper telephone lines that is limited by distance. It extends up to approximately 18,000 cable feet, in all directions from a central office (CO) or in a specific direction from a remote terminal (RT). Fiber-Optic (which we do not have) is delivered via light impulses along glass or plastic fiber lines. Wireless services include services such as WISP (provided by WiSpring), cellular 3G and 4G (provided by Verizon Wireless), and Satellite (provided by Hughes, WildBlue, etc). The survey I’m conducting will provide me with the details about what services each of you are currently using at your physical locations.
DSL Mapping Issues
There is little DSL service in Alford, but the survey will help me to pinpoint the actual residents getting service. The DSL maps are less accurate because the estimated DSL service areas were developed based on an 18,000 foot distance from Central Offices. Modeling can overestimate or underestimate actual service. Remote Terminals have been mapped and show estimated DSL status, but areas served by Remote Terminals are not included on maps. Your physical street locations will help me to see where any DSL is actually serving our town at the moment, and I’ll need to estimate the last serviceable address on applicable roads.
Summary Of The Survey
The MBI will be sending me maps and information in early February, and the Alford Broadband Survey is due back from all of you by February 29th. In the beginning of March, I’ll verify and make changes to the MBI maps, and will compile and send all of the maps and information back to the MBI. While you are waiting to receive the Alford Broadband Survey in your postal mail, you can complete the MBI’s Public Broadband Survey if you haven’t already done so, however, I still need you to complete and return Alford’s postal survey.
Sincerely, Arthur Dellea
UPDATE: On January 14th, Reva Reck of WiredWest sent me an updated correction for this article: “I’d like to clarify one point you made in regard to WiredWest. We will not be waiting for MBI’s roll-out to start our own construction. We will start on our network as soon as we obtain financing. Although we will use MBI’s middle mile, we could also connect to other fiber networks, so we wouldn’t necessarily need to wait to connect a town until MBI had done so. That said, we have a lot of work ahead of us and realistically I doubt we’ll be done before MBI. We won’t however, wait for MBI to finish before we start.”