Fair access to education, healthcare, quality employment and economic growth depends on reliable technology and the ability to access information online. Overall Ohio is ranked 37th in the nation for connectivity. Our least connected region – the 32 Appalachian counties in the southeast portion of the state – is home to 80% of unserved households, further widening regional inequities and economic disparities. We must leverage state and federal broadband expenditures that subsidize high-cost, last-mile deployments and enable low income households to participate in the internet age.
The first step to solving Ohio’s broadband problem is to understand where the need really is. Connecting Appalachia’s broadband maps combine multiple data sources, including millions of real-world speed test results, to show just how big Ohio’s digital desert really is.
Our county broadband profiles reveal the realities of broadband availability and the potential for broadband expansion in participating counties. Each profile includes five full page maps plus a budget page that shows what it will cost to build a 40 year lifespan fiber optic network and explains how much subsidy is required to make that network financially sustainable.
Federal and state governments can solve the rural broadband problem once and for all with three common sense solutions: Invest in Robust Infrastructure. Encourage Competition. Require Accountability & Transparency.
You can make a difference. Contact your legislators and let them know just how important broadband access is to your community. Tell them that common sense solutions matter.
RESEARCH CONDUCTED BY
Reid Consulting Group is the lead research consultant for Connecting Appalachia, in conjunction with project partners formulating regulatory positions to increase funding to Appalachia for expansion of broadband in the region
