Broadband Initiatives

Overview

With essential daily interactions moving increasingly online, whether for personal, commercial or government business, come expectations that internet connectivity will keep pace.

The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated these expectations and elevated the importance of reliable, high-speed broadband, for both online service seekers and service providers.

The Cape Cod Commission is engaged in projects to assess the region’s existing infrastructure and digital equity, broadly defined as the ability of all residents to fully participate and access digital life.

Regional Broadband Assessment

To quantify what’s often anecdotal information about internet speeds and reliability on the Cape, Barnstable County launched a regional broadband assessment. The results will inform recommendations for improving the network and help guide conversations about future investments.

Municipal Digital Equity Planning

The Commission is a qualified provider of free digital equity planning for all Cape Cod towns. Funded by MBI, the goal is to help communities understand their access and adoption challenges to digital equity in order to bridge the digital divide.

Community Workshop: Sandwich Digital Equity Plan

Help advance digital equity in Sandwich. Join the Town of Sandwich and the Cape Cod Commission at a community workshop on December 6 at 5:30 PM to help identify opportunities to bridge the digital divide.

Resource: FCC National Broadband Map

The FCC's map provides information on a parcel-by-parcel basis on the availability of broadband services It includes the ability to submit challenges to the accuracy of service availability. Broadband service information is reported by Internet Service Providers.

Take the Speed Tests

Both the Cape Cod Commission and the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) are collecting speed test data this summer and early fall to build baseline information on existing conditions of fixed and mobile broadband networks and service availability.

The MBI speed test is part of a longer-form survey to inform the statewide digital equity plan. The Commission’s test will support the regional assessment and is intended for Cape-based internet users. Users are encouraged to take the speed test as often as possible and across different devices and connection types.

Both are important to broadband planning efforts locally and in the state. If possible, start with the one-time state test, and follow up as often as possible with the Cape-based test.