A click away: helping rural residents stay connected with fiber internet.

• Author: Steinbrech, Amy
• Position: SPECIAL REPORT: A CLICK AWAY

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Checking your email on your smart phone in between meetings. Typing a question into your computer's search engine and receiving an answer instantly. These are the conveniences of modern technology. And whether you are an entrepreneur living in Escalante or a farmer living in Fillmore, high-speed and reliable internet has become mission critical to living in rural Utah.

Having immediate access to information is changing the way business is done in Utah, making the issue of location less important. In an age of telecommuting, businesses can set up headquarters anywhere and have become more focused on offering employees a desirable lifestyle.

"You see more and more lone eagles, even in rural areas, that have their own businesses and need broadband. They are able to live in a beautiful area and still do the job they love," says Kelleigh Cole, director of the Utah Broadband Outreach Center (UBOC) that operates under the guidance of the Governor's Office of Economic Development.

The good news is Utah is doing very well in installing broadband services throughout the state. "Along the Wasatch Front, 96 percent residents have access to speeds of 25 megabits and above, and in rural areas it's 81 percent. Frequently, we are in the top five as far as speeds in the nation and we are the fastest in the Western United States," says Cole.

Initiatives to expand fiber

Expanding broadband infrastructure, in both rural and urban parts of the state, is essential for economic development. The UBOC released a broadband plan highlighting key initiatives, such as helping communities increase speeds and giving Utah students the tools they need to succeed.

The UBOC is a public/private partnership. When broadband providers coordinate and collaborate with government entities, broadband infrastructure can be deployed more efficiently and inexpensively. It works with companies to map where services are available, and to what level, while planning for future needs. For the past five years, Utah has maintained an interactive broadband map at broadband.utah.gov/map that allows users to identify broadband service by speed and technology type in all areas of the state.

"We know which companies are located and where, so we can tell them what services are available and who's offering them," Cole says. The state also houses a map that shows where business fiber is available at locate.utah.gov.

Broadband providers and public/private stakeholders meet...