Speedy surfing: Province aims to improve internet speed for Alberta's rural communities
The UCP government has unveiled funding that will be used to increase the speed of internet service for rural, remote and Indigenous communities.
Officials say $150 million is being spent as part of the province's recovery plan and it will be used for building broadband expansion projects "as soon as possible."
Premier Jason Kenney said the funding announcement was to ensure the entire province could move ahead with its economic recovery.
"This investment ensures individuals, families and businesses in these parts of the province will not be left behind. It is Alberta's way of saying that we're ready to invest in this important technology and we're looking forward to working with our partners to make it a reality for those in Alberta who need it," he said in a statement.
The money will also create jobs, improve access to health care and education and build new economic opportunities in rural Alberta, says Service Alberta Minister Nate Glubish.
"Alberta's rural communities have struggled to grow and compete in a modern economy without access to reliable, high-speed internet," he said.
"This is great news for families, students and job creators all across the province."
The province says under the current system, 12 per cent of Alberta residents do not have access to target internet speeds set by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
That includes 80 per cent of Indigenous households and 67 per cent of rural households in Alberta.
Targets have been set by the CRTC to ensure every Canadian home and business has access to 50 Mbps download speeds and 10 Mbps upload speeds by 2030.
Details on the funding, including what communities or projects will be able to access it, will be announced in the coming weeks.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.