Building Broadband: Brightspeed lights fiber broadband in Central Pennsylvania; Comcast makes 2 Gbps service available to four Western Mass towns

Brightspeed to bring fiber broadband to 50K Residents and Businesses in Central Pennsylvania
Brightspeed will soon launch its fiber internet service to nearly 50,000 homes in Central Pennsylvania. Service will be made available to locations in the state’s Adams, Cumberland and Perry Counties. Additionally, more than $780,000 in grant funding from the PBDA will augment the company’s planned fiber network build by another 340 locations in Perry County, one of 11 counties in the state where more than 50 percent of tested broadband connections were measured as unserved, having internet speeds below 25/3 Mbps.

The table below breaks down the planned locations for its network across Central Pennsylvania.

Comcast makes 2 Gbps service available to four Western Mass towns
Comcast now offers its 2 Gbps symmetrical service in four Western Massachusetts towns-- Holyoke, Longmeadow, West Springfield, and Westfield. This speed increase, made possible by Comcast’s ongoing investment in its network, paves the way for Comcast to deliver symmetrical multigigabit speeds shortly. In addition, work is nearly complete to provide these faster speeds to all customers in Southwick and Springfield, MA with the vast majority of those customers already experiencing these quicker speeds. This project is part of Comcast’s commitment to Massachusetts, where the company has invested almost $909 million in technology and fiber infrastructure upgrades, including these network innovations, over the last three years.

Conexon Connect completes its fourth FTTH network
Conexon Connect and Eastman, Ga.-based Ocmulgee EMC have completed their fiber broadband network that spans over 1,270 miles across five counties in the EMC's rural Georgia service area. Connect, powered by Ocmulgee EMC, fiber internet service is now available to 100% of the EMC's 8,000 members in Laurens, Bleckley, Dodge, Pulaski, and Telfair counties. Ocmulgee EMC announced its project with Conexon in 2022 with an anticipated construction timeline of 2-4 years. The project is the fourth Conexon Connect FTTH network to be completed nationwide and the fourth in Georgia. Conexon's inaugural FTTH project, a partnership with Barnesville-based Southern Rivers Energy, was completed in fall 2023. Vienna-based Middle Georgia EMC finished in the first quarter of 2024, and Sandersville-based Washington EMC completed in July.

eCommunity Fiber launches fiber broadband on the Fort Eisenhower military base
eCommunity has started construction on a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) upgrade at Fort Eisenhower in Augusta, Georgia, marking what it says is a milestone in bringing internet connectivity to military families. This project is a collaborative effort between eCommunity™ Fiber, Boldyn Networks, Balfour Beatty Communities (BBC), and the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange), bringing together industry leaders to enhance the digital infrastructure on U.S. military bases. eCommunity is addressing the growing demand for high-speed internet in base housing. This project is part of the company’s broader plan to modernize nationwide digital services for military bases. The initiative was launched in partnership with Boldyn Networks, an organization known for its expertise in military installation communications infrastructure deployment. Balfour Beatty Communities (BBC), a company focused on military family housing, plays a crucial role in this project by providing comprehensive renovation services.

Frontier wins $6.5M grant to expand fiber broadband service in Knox County, Illinois
Frontier received $6.5M in Connect Illinois grant funding to expand high-speed fiber broadband service in rural Knox County, Illinois. The grant from the Illinois Office of Broadband and $1.1 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding committed by the Knox County Board will accelerate the expansion of its fiber network. With this grant, Frontier will bring fiber-based broadband to over 700 homes and businesses in rural Knox County, boosting economic and educational opportunities for the county. Frontier won over $32 million in Connect Illinois grant funding this year.

Lumos makes $144M fiber network investment in Louisville and Jefferson County, Kentucky
Lumos is extending its fiber broadband service into Kentucky with a nearly $150 million investment to build over 1,300 miles of its network in parts of Jefferson County and Louisville. Through Lumos’ fiber internet service, the following communities in Louisville and Jefferson County will have access to the internet with equally fast upload and download speeds: Jeffersontown, Saint Matthews, Shively, Lyndon, Middletown, Douglas Hills, Hurstbourne, Prospect, Graymoor-Devondale, Anchorage and other areas in the Louisville Metro.

TruVista brings broadband to South Carolina’s Village in Winnsboro
TruVista and the Fairfield County School District are constructing an education initiative in South Carolina at "The Village in Winnsboro, a Community of Fairfield Educators.” Both the residential development and Village in Winnsboro Technology Center will open this fall. TruVista will provide broadband service to residential and technology centers. The Technology Center will be equipped with community Wi-Fi and multi-gigabit internet speeds offered by TruVista. It will also feature a WebEx board that teachers can use for screen shares and online meetings, a digital whiteboard, and an ample, shared meeting space with smaller collaborative rooms. Seventeen residences will be open for move-in this fall.