Libraries can't use stimulus-funded fiber network in West Virginia

Librarian Sheila Thorne wishes the 10 computers at the Clay County Public Library wouldn't bog down during busy afternoons, but it's not like the slow Internet speeds can be blamed on a shortage of new technology. There's a new $7,800 high-speed fiber connection in the library's basement -- enough capacity to serve dozens of libraries. And there's a $22,600 Internet router capable of serving hundreds of computers. But the Clay County library isn't using the technology -- paid for by the federal stimulus. It costs too much. Across West Virginia, more than 160 libraries have new routers and fiber connections, but the fiber sits coiled up, unused, shut off. Nobody has stepped up to shoulder the blame for the snafu -- an apparent combination of project mismanagement, poor planning and bureaucratic bungling.