BUILDING A DIGITAL BRIDGE

Going between Eugene and Springfield by car or bus is pretty straight forward. Franklin Blvd to Main Street, Highway 126, and Beltline all offer relatively traffic-free route options. The “digital highway” between the two neighboring cities however, has been increasingly popular and constrained in recent years.

Similar to the number of lanes in a freeway, there are currently a finite number of publicly owned fiber optic cables between the two communities. Fiber optic cables are made of glass and transmit data in the form of light. These types of cables serve as a form of backbone for the internet.

Jacob Callister, Principal Planner, Lane Council of Governments is the manager of hundreds of miles of fiber optic assets owned in common by a consortium of public agencies. He receives frequent requests for fiber leases to support connectivity within the Springfield area as well as connectivity to outlying rural areas. 

“My answer is always disappointing” shared Callister. “The limitation in fiber assets between Eugene and Springfield has created a log—jam resulting in an effective moratorium on connectivity, and has cut off access to rural fiber assets,stifling their full utilization,” added Callister. 

A recent grant from national non-profit US Ignite aims to alleviate that bottleneck, helping usher in an era of faster internet and at lower costs for residents of Springfield and outlying rural communities.

US Ignite helps accelerate the growth of the Smart City movement by connecting the most innovative and dedicated communities to enhance their on the ground efforts

“Eugene & Springfield are fostering the kind of innovation and growth you use to only see in large innovation hubs,” said Scott Turnbull, Director of Technology at US Ignite.

“The growth of tech jobs in the region is a testament to the entrepreneurial spirit in the region and efforts like EUGNet and InfiNet are a great example of how the agile nature of strong local communities can build things faster and have a direct impact on the community,” Turnbull added.

Instead of paying for additional physical fiber to be installed, which could involve costly underground drilling, the grant proposal envisions instead to use existing fiber more efficiently.

By utilizing the different wavelengths (i.e., colors) of light, a single strand of fiber optic cable can be used multiple times, providing capacity for dozens of different internet service providers at the same time.

"For years, SUB and the City of Springfield have been leveraging the utility’s publicly owned fiber infrastructure to enable private sector competition. It’s a winning formula that supports Springfield's growth and vitality, and we’re excited to explore ways this grant expands opportunities for our community.” said Jeff Nelson, SUB General Manager

At the onramp of the “digital bridge” between Eugene and Springfield is the Willamette Internet Exchange. The Willamette Internet Exchange (WIX) is a provider of regional network connectivity that is vendor neutral, amplifying the value of existing public investments in internet infrastructure. This in turn makes the entire region more accessible and more attractive to Internet Service Providers. 

Ultimately more affordable gigabit class internet service will help unlock the potential of local innovators and make the region even more attractive to new companies, who offer high wage employment opportunities.

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Visit https://us-ignite.org to learn more about Smart Communities and http;//thewix.net to learn more about the Willamette Internet Exchange.