They celebrated the installation of a milestone “last mile” on Westham Island this week.
Delta Mayor George Harvie joined Lisa Beare, BC Minister of Citizens' Services, representatives with Telus and others on Monday at Westham Island for an announcement that high-speed Internet fibre connectivity is now being installed for the final 21 homes of 136 for the community.
The enhanced access to high-speed internet services surpasses 50 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 10 Mbps for uploads.
Harvie said it is great news as business in the farming community as well as children with their schooling had been at a disadvantage with the lack of quality, high-speed Internet service.
A news release notes that the total cost of the project is approximately $529,000 with the province investing as much as $320,000 through the Connecting British Columbia program, administered by Northern Development Initiative Trust. Telus will contribute approximately $209,000 towards the project.
In March 2022, the province entered into a historic agreement with the federal government to invest $830 million to finish the job of connecting all households in B.C. to high-speed internet services by 2027.
“Our commitment to connect every rural, remote and Indigenous community in B.C. by 2027 ensures the benefits of high-speed internet are shared by everyone in B.C.,” said Beare.
