Internet Inequity in Chicago: Adoption, Affordability, and Availability

This research characterizes the state of Internet equity in Chicago (IL), focusing on different dimensions of Internet equity, including availability, affordability, and adoption. To this end, we combine multiple existing datasets to understand the digital divide in Chicago and the contributing factors. Our findings show a disparity in broadband adoption rates across neighborhoods in Chicago: Broadband adoption varies between 58--93% across community areas, with low access areas mostly concentrated in South and West Chicago. Furthermore, adoption rates are positively correlated with income and education level and negatively correlated with age. The former highlights the need to provide affordable Internet access, while the latter suggests introducing technology training programs, especially for the elderly. We also find disparity in broadband availability---with the number of broadband provider options in a census block significantly varying across the city, indicating infrastructure equity issues.