After ramping up to meet heightened broadband demand during the pandemic, Lakeland Energy is pleased to learn that new federal and provincial funding programs will be taking a tailored approach to support network infrastructure that best meets local connectivity needs. With government funding assistance, Lakeland is poised to begin rolling out as many as 11 separate projects to bring broadband to where it is most needed.
The 11 projects are part of a plan Lakeland has developed to increase Internet coverage, at speeds of 50/10 Mbps and beyond, to another 21,000 homes and businesses, reaching almost 100,000 local residents. The areas are located between Gravenhurst, throughout most of Muskoka, west to Parry Sound, east to Dwight and north to South River. “With our 500 kilometers of fibre optics, access to more than 100 towers, and local ownership and expertise, Lakeland is uniquely positioned to help deliver more broadband where it is most needed,” advised Chris Litschko, CEO.
The projects would build on Lakeland Energy’s existing network infrastructure, engineering, and customer service expertise, including fibre optics and wireless operating divisions. “We have successfully worked with Lakeland in rolling out high-speed broadband throughout our territory. They have the resources to construct this critical infrastructure elsewhere as well,” Craig Brown, Chief Executive Director for Wasauksing First Nation.
“Our unique mapping, fibre, and wireless expertise has allowed us to create a plan that is shovel-ready and can begin immediately,” added Dave Keith, Director of Business Development & Operations. “We look forward to working with local partners to ramp up quickly.”
COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of tackling broadband in a region challenged with thick forest, lakes, and rugged terrain making good broadband inaccessible for many without government funding support. Lakeland Energy’s plan is part of its effort to fill in remaining underserviced areas in the region over the next 5-7 years in ways that support new options for small business, allow for more robust school and work-from-home options, and enhance access for those who make Parry Sound-Muskoka their homes, or wish to.
Don’t miss out on Doppler!
Sign up here to receive our email digest with links to our most recent stories.
Local news in your inbox three times per week!
Click here to support local news
Chris Lowe is spot-on about Starlink. Governments should track this very closely. Satellite internet will be available everywhere, not just along fibre corridors and within reach of towers.
Starlink early beta is running now and general beta will start shortly. Starlink general availability in Muskoka will be late this year (as announced pre-Covid) or early next year. Speed and latency will be excellent.
Starlink has not announced pricing. They’ve hinted that they’ll deliver high-quality service for less than current terrestrial rural rates “for crappy service”. We’ll know what they mean by that within six months.
Starlink is aimed at rural customers. Fibre will absolutely still make sense in Muskoka’s urban areas.
Lack of broadband is both an effect and a cause of poverty. Tell your MP and MPP that rural fibre is an idea whose time has come and gone. We should instead subsidize satellite internet for those who need it.
As a nation, we tied the country together by paying for a railway across it and later, the ability to deliver a letter to Iqualuit or cross-town at the same price.
In 2020, affordable satellite broadband for all is the new Last Spike.
Hate to sound a tad skeptical but I have been hearing the same old story since moving here from Toronto 14 years ago. Unfortunately we live in third world rural Ontario when it comes to broadband. For some 12 years I have endured wireless that is barely above the speeds of dial up, that is when it isn’t down which is a lot of the time. Try downloading a Windows 10 update, you leave it running all night and if you are lucky it will be finished by breakfast. With the new normal thanks to covid 19 kids are supposedly learning from home and some parents choosing to work remotely a reliable and faster broadband is a necessity. While I applaud Lakelands approach 11 shovel ready projects are a mere drop in the bucket and a 5-7 year plan is a joke to say the least.
I get the fact that in a lot of cases it’s strictly a business decision, without sufficient potential customers in a particular area no telecom company is going to make the investment. In todays ecomic reality extra money for rural broadband despite lip service from all levels of government surely isn’t high on the list.
That said the options for most of us that have been underserved for so long are not likely to improve anytime soon. The only bright spot might be Musk’s proposed Starlink satellite broadband, sure Musk has his detractors but you can’t knock his entrepreneurial vision. If SpaceX can deliver astronauts to a space station then satellite broadband should not be impossibility. Besides having a reliable high speed internet the upside is more competition other than the big three telecoms and not having to rely on companies that base service on business decisions and hopefully won’t take 5 to 7 years as Lakeland is suggesting.
Are you planning to come out Ravenscliffe Road past Line Hill?? We would welcome the service with open arms out here by Camp Tawingo.
Sounds good.
We have been with Lakeland for a while now and have great reliable service, WITHOUT a creeping monthly rate as a competitor we used before was always doing.
Keep it local !!