KEGASKA and LA ROMAINE, Que. – Telus today launched the second phase of its high-speed network deployment in the Lower North Shore (that portion of Quebec tucked under Labrador) to provide all of the region’s communities with access to 4G LTE advanced technology by 2021, meaning residents will have access to mobile phone service and high-speed home Internet with speeds similar to those available in urban centres.
Around 1,000 citizens in these two communities of the vast and roadless Lower North Shore are already connected.
“Telus’ ambition is to deploy its infrastructure in remote regions, especially in the unprecedented context of the Covid-19 pandemic, in which people are relying on networks for work, education, access to health care, and social contact more than ever before,” said Marie-Christine D’Amours, Telus vice-president, consumer solutions and customer experience in Quebec, in the press release. “Our project in the vast Lower North Shore is clearly one of the most complex and ambitious deployments that Telus has ever undertaken. More importantly, it’s also one of the most crucial as it bridges the digital divide and gives everyone an equal chance to succeed, no matter where they live.”
“The Covid-19 pandemic shows how essential high-speed service is to ensure our region’s economic vitality, keep education going, and provide virtual health care services, while enabling families to stay informed and entertained,” added Darlene Rowsell Roberts, administrator of the municipality of Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent, in the Telus release. “Since last November, that same connectivity has brought us together with our loved ones and have encouraged our youth to stay in the region. It is also essential for attracting teachers, entrepreneurs and health care professionals. We can now travel the region safely thanks to the new wireless service, and have access to all the tools we need to share the beauty of our communities with the whole world.”
In November 2019, the company announced several remote communities between Blanc-Sablon and Pakua Shipu which had access to high-speed connectivity for the first time and this next phase of its wireless network deployment efforts in the region, which had been temporarily interrupted in the first few weeks of the pandemic, is now back on track. Teams onsite are complying with all the rules established by provincial and regional public health authorities and are working closely with the municipalities. Telus still expects to have connected all of the communities by 2021, almost a year ahead of the originally targeted schedule, added the release.
This deployment was made possible with $23 million from the governments of Quebec and Canada as well as Telus. Equipment is transported by ship and helicopter, and entire teams travel in all-terrain vehicles to build the network in remote areas.
While the company has focused on its LTE advanced wireless technology, it is supported by 200 kilometres of fibre optic and one of the world’s largest and most advanced microwave ecosystems, explains the announcement.
