More homes and businesses in Chatham are about to get faster internet service.
Chatham-based TekSavvy is expanding fibre from the current 3,500 homes and businesses to approximately 12,000 addresses by the end of 2021. TekSavvy said the fibre service is very consistent, reliable, affordable, and can be delivered at speeds of up to one gigabyte per second.
TekSavvy Vice President Mike Stanford said the local telecommunications company plans to expand fast internet service into rural communities across Kent County but that greatly depends on government funding.
TekSavvy's Kaleena Cryderman said Chatham residents will receive notice when crews are ready to deliver fibre internet to homes. Cryderman said fast and reliable internet is more important now than it has ever been.
"The response has been phenomenal. We understand that digging up your front yard isn't necessarily ideal but we definitely do our best to restore your property back to its original condition," said Cryderman. "We're very much in an age of digital transformation and so many people working from home and so many students learning from home that internet is now more important than it ever has been."
Cryderman said the expansion is working its way to North Chatham.
"The majority of the areas at this time and coming up in 2021 will expand off the south side and the centre of Chatham and then we'll start working our way to the north side," Cryderman said.
TekSavvy has also been building a 4G wireless network in Essex, Middlesex and Lambton counties to deliver home internet with speeds of up to 25 Mbps. The tech company currently has six 4G towers up and running in Essex, Middlesex and Lambton counties and another six are currently under construction with the goal of having 25 to 28 towers in southwestern Ontario in about a year to service about 25,000 users.
Homes and businesses within approximately six kilometres of these towers will be able to get service although speeds will vary as they depend on factors such as distance, topography and building sites. TekSavvy plans to invest over $200 million over the next five years to build new high-speed broadband internet networks. The spending includes investments in the fibre and 4G networks.
TekSavvy said their focus is on bridging the "digital divide" in rural and underserved areas and providing "true choice" to Canadians for their internet service.
