Dive Brief:
- Connect Ohio, a subsidiary of technology organization Connected Nation, has found gaps in broadband coverage across the state's southeast region that could negatively impact public safety, according to a recent press statement.
- Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) worked with Connected Nation to map coverage of the four major carriers: Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Sprint. The mapping was done by drive-testing the networks, then identifying areas and roads that lacked good broadband access.
- Carroll, Guernsey, Harrison, Morgan, Monroe, Muskingum, Perry, Pike, Scioto, and Washington Counties were all identified as areas that need the most improvement. Connected Nation’s findings are being shared with those communities as well as a roadmap on how to solve the coverage gaps.
Dive Insight:
While broadband coverage is seen as an everyday necessity, it will be even more crucial as IoT-based technologies, especially those related to autonomous vehicles, develop across cities. Beyond autonomous vehicles, better internet coverage along roads could improve public safety today in numerous ways. If someone is in an accident, phone service is essential to call in help. Additionally, police officers can more easily identify dangerous individuals they pull over if they are able to efficiently look up information or license plates.
Most maps by mobile providers are created by predictive models and can be inaccurate. To get better data than the predictive maps, seven U.S. senators have introduced the Rural Wireless Act of 2017, a bill that would require the FCC to collect up-to-date and accurate wireless broadband coverage.
ODOT hopes to solve the broadband problems in southeastern Ohio by the end of 2018. To get that done, ODOT will offer up assets like land or towers to mobile carriers. It will also be important for Connect Ohio to help administer federal funds for the carriers to complete the work.
