(Wellington, ON) May 6, 2021 – Today Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) announced that construction of new broadband infrastructure continues to move forward in Wellington County as Cogeco Connexion breaks ground to bring high-speed internet service to more than 280 additional homes and businesses in the community of Eden Mills.
“SWIFT continues to move forward with its broadband expansion plans in Wellington County and across Southwestern Ontario,” said Gary McNamara, SWIFT Board Chair. “Today’s announcement is yet another important step in the right direction to ensuring equitable access to high-speed internet services throughout our region.”
The $976,000 high-speed broadband project is expected to be completed, with service fully available by August 2021.
“Having access to high-speed, reliable internet is essential to the economic growth and prosperity of our region,” said County of Wellington Warden Kelly Linton. “The County is pleased to be working with SWIFT to expand high speed broadband services throughout our underserviced areas.”
”Cogeco is thrilled to once again be partnering with SWIFT to deliver its High-Speed Internet services to more than 280 homes and businesses in Eden Mills, within the Township of Guelph/Eramosa. This project is using a Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) solution capable of delivering speeds of up to 1 Gbps, enabling services comparable to major urban centres. This will concretely contribute to reducing the digital divide between urban and rural areas in Ontario, which is essential in enabling economic recovery,” said Matt Wickham, Vice-President and General Manager, Ontario Region, Cogeco Connexion
Work is now also underway in the Township of Centre Wellington as Cogeco Connexion has begun construction of a $7.3 million fibre-optic network to bring improved broadband service to more than 1,770 homes and businesses throughout the communities of Brucedale, Centre Inn, Everton, Oustic, Simpson Corners, Shands, Spier, Belwood, Pine Meadows, Maple Leaf Acres, Centre Wellington and Guelph Eramosa. The project is expected to be completed, with service fully available by December 2021.
In the Township of Wellington North, North Frontenac Telephone Company (NFTC) is completing the network build of a $2 million fibre-to-the-home solution that will bring high-speed internet access to approximately 275 households and businesses between the communities of Wallenstein and Arthur. Customers in the project area are being brought online in a phased approach with service expected to be fully available later this month.
EH!tel Networks has completed construction of a $2.7 million high-speed network in the Township of Guelph/Eramosa and is now delivering improved broadband access to more than 670 households and businesses within the communities of Ariss, Ponsonby and Inverhaugh.
“Work is well underway in Wellington County with more residents being brought online daily,” said Barry Field, Executive Director, SWIFT. “By the end of this year all 3,000 underserved homes and businesses, approximately 7,500 residents, located in SWIFT’s Wellington County project areas will have access to high-speed internet.”
SWIFT, in partnership with the federal and provincial governments and private sector investors, announced a combined investment of $13 million to deliver high-speed internet to more than 3,000 underserved homes and businesses within the County of Wellington.
Additional Information:
Wellington County Project Overview
About SWIFT:
Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology (SWIFT) is a non-profit regional broadband project initiated by the Western Ontario Wardens’ Caucus to subsidize the construction of high-speed broadband networks across Southwestern Ontario.
The project was approved for funding under the New Building Canada Fund – Small Communities Fund (NBCF-SCF), a joint federal and provincial infrastructure funding program, and leverages additional funding from municipal partners and private sector investors to improve access to broadband services across the region.
Media Contact:
Melissa O’Brien
[email protected]
Manager, Communications and Stakeholder Relations
Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology
226.256.1640
