New FCC Broadband Map shows better internet service than actually exists (2024)

A first glance at the long-awaited new Federal Communications Commission Broadband Map seems to offer good news for residents of northwestern Pennsylvania.

All of Erie and Crawford counties, and almost all of Warren County, have 100% access to an internet provider offering speeds of at least 25/3 megabits per second — fast enough for multiple users to perform basic online tasks such as streaming video.

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But that first glance is deceiving, according to local government officials and internet providers.

"That's because the map includes satellite internet providers that promise (100/10 Mbps) for everyone but many people in the area can't get that type of coverage from them," said Jessica Horan-Kunco, Erie County's planning director, whose office is charged with helping expand broadband coverage in the county.

A more realistic view of the area's broadband access can be found on the map by limiting the providers to those offering wired or fixed wireless internet. The map shows significant areas with less than 10% access, including much of southeastern Erie County, parts of eastern Crawford County and rural areas in Warren County.

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This comes as no surprise to Horan-Kunco and others who have tracked Erie County's broadband access for the past several years. They already knew how limited internet access is around the Union City-Corry area and in other small pockets of the county.

"We have gone driving around the county and have seen what is going on," said Matt Wiertel, director of sales and business development for Erie-based internet provider Velocity Network. "South of Interstate 90, if you hug the New York state border, it's a cone of silence. Even cell phone service is terrible."

Still, the new FCC Broadband Map, which was published Nov. 18 after several delays, is a significant upgrade over its predecessor.

People can type an address and see what internet providers, if any, are available. The previous map only tracked coverage by census tract, and indicated service was available if at least one residence or business in the tract had access.

"This map is a vast improvement from the previous one," said Michelle Jaggi, who is also involved in expanding the county's broadband access as executive director of the Erie Area Council of Governments. "It shows granular data down to the street level instead of the census tract level. But it still leaves out important data, such as the quality of internet service and the affordability of internet service."

By quality of internet service, Jaggi meant each provider's actual download and upload speeds for an individual household or business. Information for the map, including general internet speeds, was given by internet providers.

No internet provider prices are listed on the map.

Next step: Challenging the new FCC map

One of the main reasons for publishing the new map is to use it for allocating $42 billion in federal money to state governments to expand broadband access.

The next step in this process is for individuals, local governments, school districts and other organizations to challenge the map's accuracy. Erie County is preparing such a challenge on behalf of residents, according to Horan-Kunco.

The county's planning department is asking county residents who are without home internet service, or have submitted a challenge to the FCC map, to notify them with that information in order to enable acountywide bulk challenge.

They can contact the planning department by email at challengefcc@eriecountypa.gov or by calling (814) 451-7345.

A Jan. 13 deadline has been set to submit these challenges to the FCC in time to make it into an updated map that will be used to allocate Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment funding. Horan-Kunco said the county planning department needs to submit its list by Jan. 9.

"So we need to look at the FCC map and prepare to challenge areas of it where they say there is coverage but in reality there isn't," Horan-Kunco said. "The county planning department doesn't plan to challenge itself but, along with the C.O.G., we can provide support for school districts and municipal governments that do want to challenge."

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Erie County and the C.O.G. will then use this updated FCC map as part of their countywide broadband feasibility study, which will provide a road map for high-speed internet projects throughout the county.

"The timeline for that is six months to a year," Jaggi said. "That's why we need to find out where the gaps and deficits are in this current map."

Of course, people can also use the map to see what internet providers offer service to their house, and what territories each internet provider covers.

Though it doesn't include the costs, it's valuable information, Wiertel said.

"Just keep in mind that having a provider listed on the map for your house doesn't automatically mean you can receive their service," Wiertel said.

Contact David Bruce atdbruce@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter@ETNBruce.