Residents of Turner Valley can look forward to dramatically increased internet speeds this year, thanks to the installation of a new fibre optic network.

Community Services and Business Development Manager for the Town of Turner Valley, Monique LeBlanc, says an upgrade is long overdue.

"There's been an issue of stability, and also really really slow (internet) speeds, what we understand is that we will be getting up to about 150 megabits per second (mb/s) which is a lot faster than the current, that sits around 20 (mb/s)."

LeBlanc says not only is it a quality of life upgrade, local businesses stand to gain a lot from the fibre installation.

"Something that I think is very important, is that its very important for these communities to be able to have access to more efficient and better internet, because it allows businesses to be more competitive, and have access to larger marketplaces. It also helps residents, and attract new businesses as well."

LeBlanc says the Town considers access to reliable internet an essential service.

"As a community we have been lobbying for better internet for years, we consider this an essential service, we really do expect that this is going to help us boost our business attraction abilities, and I think residents are very excited about it."

With installation currently underway, LeBlanc expects the project to be complete by the end of the year.

 

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