JOHNSON TOWNSHIP—A groundbreaking ceremony was held in Johnson Township last week that will see the connection of 18,600 homes on Manitoulin Island and across the North Shore of Lake Huron to high-speed broadband internet.
Joe Hickey, founder and president of ROCK Networks, was quoted at the ceremony that typically the DSL service technology in the area is 25 plus years old. “At the minimum this new service will provide 300 times faster speeds.”
As had been previously reported, ROCK Networks received $97 million in funding from both the federal and provincial governments to support building the network, which will provide fibre-to-the-home connections with download speed of up to 1.5 gigabits per second.
Once construction is completed, internet service providers like Indigenous-owned First Tel will be able to offer their own services using the infrastructure.
Mr. Hickey told CBC News he expects the costs will vary on available packages, but the top speeds will likely be less than the $150 per month for a satellite internet connection with Starlink.
The new service, “will level the playing field because this will be the fastest internet in Northern Ontario, and across Canada,” said Carol Hughes, MP for Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing. She said this initiative “is extremely important” to the area as often rural Northern Ontario communities are left behind.
Michael Mantha, MPP for Algoma-Manitoulin said the upgraded internet will mean small communities will be able to attract more people to the community. He said people are looking for a different lifestyle that Northern Ontario provides, but good broadband internet service is essential so they can live and work here.
Mr. Hickey noted that the new system allows for expansion in the future.
The construction project will be carried out in five sections with the first including the Johnson Township area with customers expected to be connected by early 2025. The final section, which will include Manitoulin Island will be completed by the end of 2025.
