By Joanne Rodgers, Bruce Peninsula Press
Xplornet is deploying 20.2 kilometres of fibre optic cable to connect 647 homes and businesses to high-speed Internet offering gigabit speeds throughout the village of Lion’s Head. They anticipate the service to be available starting in November 2022.
Project valued at $1.5 million
Xplornet says the project is valued at over $1.5 million. The installation encompasses the village of Lion’s Head; north on Isthmus Bay to the end of Whippoorwill Road in the east and west on the Forty Hills Road as far north as the Caudle Side Road, continuing west on Caudle Side Road to Hwy 6; east along Moore Street to the end of Moore Street; and south on Bruce 9 from the Ferndale Road for 500m; and also west on the Ferndale Road to the Bethel Church.
The project map can be viewed at https://swiftruralbroadband.ca/resources/our-service-map/
Enter Lion’s Head in the search box of the interactive map box.
Fibre lines connect directly to a home or business
Xplornet states “We are installing fibre-to-the-premise Internet which means the fibre lines connect directly to a home or business. This network technology is superior to fibre-to-the-curb as it offers much faster and symmetrical speeds, meaning upload speeds are the same as download speeds. This is a 100% fiber optic installation. There are no traditional copper lines.”
“Lion’s Head is a very rocky location which creates some challenges as we roll out fibre but this is nothing our teams can’t handle as our expertise is building out networks across rural and remote locations in Canada.” says Xplornet.
Approximately 50 percent of the fiber optic cable will be installed underground and the other 50 percent will be hung overhead.
Project completion by November 2022
The array of little orange flags along the streets, reams of orange cables and drilling machines, backhoes and other support vehicles have become a familiar sight in Lion’s Head. This common sight has generated lots of curiosity and interest from passers-by and on local social media posts.
Ledcor is the prime contractor in charge of the construction of the project and may hire sub-contractors from time to time as a way to manage the construction schedule.
The installation project is expected to be completed by November 2022.
Maggie Burzawa, Senior Manager, Public Affairs & Media Relations Xplornet Communications Inc. says ”Customers can follow us on social media where we share updates on our service availability. You can find those links at www.xplornet.com. Customers will also be notified once we get closer to the anticipated service availability date. We are looking forward to bringing the vast benefits of a high-speed fibre-to-the-premise network to residents and businesses in Lion’s Head and building on our progress towards expanding our network so that all rural Canadians can connect to what matters most.”
