Internet access and broadband transmission has become an essential element in many of our everyday lives.
This week Federal and State officials visited Centre County to outline new statewide internet programs as the county itself has been moving forward on its own initiatives.
Even in this day and age, there are places in Pennsylvania with no internet service at all
“290 Thousand households in rural Pennsylvania don’t have internet, let alone broadband, there’s 178 Thousand households that don’t have a computer”
He was one of the officials at the Marion Walker Elementary School in Centre County this Week, talking about the Internet For All Initiative which be backed by billions of dollars to improve access.
But one of the first issues to be identified is where especially in rural areas are the service dead spots with little or no service, to identify some agencies doing surveys, what they term a census
“The federal communications commission has done a census, but I think it’s very suspect, they’re doing a new census, but even they are saying, you need to do your own”
Which was done separately in Centre County earlier this year a separate broadband speed survey coming after other internet related initiatives
“We created a public private partnership with Centrewysp to cover most of Penns Valley, most of Georges Valley and Brush Valley”
Recently, at least four new areas of Centre County identified by a state broadband task force for service improvements
“I believe by next year we should have gigibit speeds in portions of Snow Shoe, Snow Shoe Township and if were really fortunate it might go all the way to Clarence”
