PAKUA SHIPU, QC — Families and businesses in remote communities between Blanc-Sablon and Pakua Shipu on Quebec’s Lower North Shore now have access to wireless services and can browse the Internet at similar speeds to those available in urban areas, thanks to a joint investment of more than $23 million by the provincial and federal governments and Telus.
Quebec Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Côte-Nord Region, Jonathan Julien, and members of the Innu community and Telus joined local representatives of the Lower North Shore in Pakua Shipu today to celebrate the availability of high-speed wireless in the region.
This is the first milestone of the deployment of high-speed wireless Internet based on LTE Advanced technology in the vast and roadless Lower North Shore territory, Telus said in a news release. Some of the remote communities that now have wireless access for the first time include Brador, Middle Bay, Saint-Augustin, Old Fort as well as Pakua Shipu.
“At Telus, our ambition is to bridge the digital divide and give everyone an equal chance to prosper, no matter their circumstances or where they live, by expanding our network coverage to reach the most remote places in Quebec and Canada,” explained François Gratton, group president, Telus, and chair, Telus Québec, in the news release.
“We are leveraging the ingenuity of our team and our award-winning networks to build one of our most complex and biggest digital infrastructure projects north of the 49th parallel. This new connectivity in the Lower North Shore will enable its residents to be all connected for good, ensuring the growth of local businesses by taking advantage of digital opportunities. It means health care workers can further use technologies to provide valuable care, and it gives villages a powerful tool to attract new teachers, professionals and families,” Gratton added.
Denis Mestenapéo, Pakua Shipu band council chief, was also quoted in the news release as saying: “It’s a bridge to the future that Telus and the governments are building for the Pakua Shipu Innu community as well as the entire Lower North Shore. In fact, I would even go so far as to say that it is a historical moment. The new connectivity will help us preserve our traditions, which are so important, while giving us access to invaluable digital tools to share our rich culture.”
To provide high-speed connectivity services to the remote communities of the Lower North Shore in a timely and cost-effective way, Telus is utilizing LTE Advanced wireless technology. The service is powered by a mixed IP backbone network combining 200 km of fibre optics and one of the largest and most technologically advanced microwave radio systems deployed in the world, Telus said in its news release.
In addition to providing 5,000 residents and local businesses with access to high-speed connections at home and at work, the LTE Advanced network will enhance connectivity and security on the go thanks to wireless mobile services. Telus said the chosen technology is best suited to serve the challenging and roadless territory of the Lower North Shore, stretching along 400 km of coastline. Equipment was brought in by boat and helicopter, and teams travelled by all-terrain vehicles to build and activate remote sites.
The Telus news release said the Blanc-Sablon and Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon communities will be connected to the new network in the next few weeks, and St. Paul’s River will be next in early 2020. Telus will continue deploying its high-speed network next year in the villages between Kegaska and La Tabatière, the company said. In addition, 16 public institutions, including schools and health care centres, will be directly connected to fibre optics. Telus said it expects to reach all 1,750 families and nearly 100 businesses in all Lower North Shore communities by 2021, which is nearly a year ahead of the date that was initially projected. The company said it is also opening one of its most remote stores in Canada in Blanc-Sablon, consolidating its local presence for years to come.
