Delta’s Digital Divide

The delights of living in the Delta are sometimes weighed down by services taken for granted elsewhere.  Outsider traffic, non-working ferries, power outages. And abysmally slow internet.  A symbolic hurdle was legislation passed this week  – President Biden’s one trillion dollar infrastructure bill, of which $65 billion is dedicated to bringing the nation’s unserved and underserved communities up to speed with high speed internet.

Symbolic because of the eleven projects approved by Governor Newsom, none affect the Delta.  Those affected are deserving and in many cases more so than our own local area.  They include a range of geographic locations and technical approaches. Projects are being initiated in the following tribal communities, counties and cities: Alpine County; Amador County; Calaveras County; Central Coast; Coachella Valley; Colusa Area; Inyo County; Kern County; Kern/San Luis Obispo Area; Lake County Area; Los Angeles and South Los Angeles; Oakland; Orange County; Plumas Area; Riverside/San Diego Area; San Bernardino County; Siskiyou Area; and West Fresno.

Consumer Reports has been gathering information on ISPs (internet service providers) and their cost and upload/download speeds.  In the interview below learn more about the nation’s digital divide.

Resources:

Press release – https://www.whitehouse.gov/bipartisan-infrastructure-law/

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