Mapping Maryland s Broadband Inventory: The Maryland Broadband Mapping Initiative David Sides Center for GIS at Towson University
Maryland Broadband Mapping Initiative Funded Under and By: American Reinvestment & Recovery Act (ARRA) National Telecommunications Information Agency (NTIA) Collect Accurate State Level Data Improved availability/adoption data to support expansion of the technology Develop State and National Broadband Maps comprehensive, interactive and searchable
Maryland s Broadband Mapping Team MD Broadband Cooperative Salisbury University Towson University Maryland GIO/Dept of Information Technology MD Department of Business & Economic Development (DBED)
Data Development/Delivery Goals Identify and Map: Availability of broadband service Technologies used to provide service Speeds at which broadband is available Deliver Data via Publicly Available, Searchable, Interactive Map Updated every six months
Requesting Provider Data Encourage Provider Participation, Establish NDAs Broadband Cooperative members (61) Others identified by speed test results (+30) So far, data received from 41 Service Areas Requested Formats Address lists or Census blocks
Technologies of Transmission One or more of the following: Asymmetric xdsl Symmetric xdsl Other Copper Wireline Cable Modem Other Optical Carrier/Fiber to the End User Electric Power Line Terrestrial Fixed Wireless Terrestrial Mobile Wireless Satellite
Upload/Download Speeds Maximum advertised upload speed Maximum advertised download speed Typical upload speed Typical download speed
Results Coverage Statistics Number of BBSPs % of Maryland (by area) % of Maryland (by 2000 population) 0 3.38% 0.15% 1 6.84% 0.78% 2 11.73% 1.79% 3 16.95% 4.10% 4 17.31% 4.50% 5 13.13% 6.79% 6+ 30.65% 81.87%
Results Coverage Statistics Technology of Transmission % of Maryland (by area) % of Maryland (by 2000 population) Wireless 89.14% 98.77% Digital subscriber line 74.47% 96.47% Cable modem 61.19% 91.75% Fiber to the user 14.73% 50.56%
Data Verification Service Area Data Verification ID zero population census blocks ID census blocks outside of cable franchise or DSL boundaries Verify Service Speed & Availability Speed tests (crowd sourcing) Field data verification (wireless)
Take the Speed Test E mails to University employees (5,000+) Mailing house list 1.3 million e mails Governor s Office Support Governor s mailing list Speed Tests to Date in 2010 Over 50,000
Speed Test Results
Wireless Data Field Verification Statewide 4 km2 Grid 1472 locations Tested Four Providers Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T Mobile QoS Solutions Speed Test FCC as back up
Wireless Sampling Grid
Wireless Service Field Verification Created Daily Routes with Esri s ArcLogistics
Phase II Initiatives (Years 2 5) 1) Data Updates 2) Address Level Data 3) Application Enhancements
Phase II: Data Updates Data updates continued every 6 months Extended to include broadband resellers Provider data feedback loop Resolve data issues Provide map & request accuracy confirmation Continued data verification
Phase II: Strive for Address Level Data Block Level Data is Problematic
Phase II: Application Enhancements Wi Fi hotspots Leverage existing sources of information Crowd sourcing Mobile Text Based Search Capability Multiple Address Input Identify Business only Providers Dynamic Content (related efforts & news)
Questions? www.mdbroadbandmap.org broadband.maryland.gov