Broadband Keeps Texas Transportation Moving

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MOTRAN, the Midland-Odessa Transportation Alliance credits better broadband with better business opportunities. The Texas organization says that the effort to get their part of Texas digitally connected in already paying off, reports GovTech.com.

“About a year ago, we started investing, kicked the project off, built out the entire city, fiber to home. That is one aspect of where we can leverage the infrastructure we buy,” said Kyle Towns of NextLink. “We talk about a high level of service. It may be a hospital, it may be a financial institution, a manufacturing service that needs a high level of service. We can incorporate that as well.” 

Last year, NextLink won $2.7 million in the Federal Communication Commission’s Connect America Fund auction. MOTRAN was one of the beneficiaries of the outreach to rural Texas. Infrastructure plans will allow underserved areas in west Texas to build new cell towers. They will also be able to incorporate existing structures like water towers to host connecting wireless service technology. Town pointed to Lampasas where NextLink was able to install new equipment following the footprint left by old cable and DSL lines.

Towns says NextLink is interested in talking with housing developers to include broadband infrastructure in new house construction. Other telecoms like Big Bend Telecom (BBT) and Suddenlink are also advancing into rural Texas, interested in opportunities that range from warehousing copper wire, to supporting the Midland International Air and Space Port. 

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