Open-access fiber network promises to bring broadband to rural Nichols, New York

Broadband internet access has been slow to reach rural communities, but the Town of Nichols in Tioga County (NY) is addressing this through an open-access fiber network. Called "Nichols Fiber,"  the network could close the gap and bring the town reliable internet service. Any internet service provider (ISP) will be able to use the fiber to serve customers in Nichols. The pandemic thrust the digital divide into the spotlight and led many to embrace broadband as a vital utility essential to economic development. Large ISPs don’t build into rural areas with low population densities because the customer base isn’t large enough to meet their bottom line. Nichols has a population of under 2,300 people, and under 1,000 households. The first provider to commit to serving Nichols is Fiberspark, a small Ithaca (NY)-based ISP that currently just serves around 700 households. The network in Nichols is a test case — one of four projects happening under New York’s $1 billion ConnectALL initiative, which was launched in early January 2022 to expand broadband access in the state. The Southern Tier Network (STN) is the nonprofit in charge of building the fiber network.