Accessing Tech: Rural Communications

I have talked about the necessity of technologies such as broadband internet and telephone service for low-income individuals. In my initial post, I noted that there are relatively simple things communities can do to make sure that low-income populations have access to these services. This assertions was, admittedly, an urban-centric solution. Making sure that low-income residents in rural areas have telephone and internet access is an entirely different, and more difficult, matter.

The need for such solutions is rather obvious, given a few statistics. A Pew survey found that 50% of rural households had broadband internet access compared to 70% of urban households. Broadband is often more difficult to get in rural areas because the low population density and geographical issues make it less cost-effective for telecommunications companies to provide internet access to rural areas. There are also issues with telephone access in these areas. The FCC recently cited a study that finds that 80% of rural telephone companies are affected by "call completion" problems, which include calls not reaching residents and poor call quality. This can be an unacceptable hindrance when looking for a job or trying to access social services.

The Census Bureau puts the number of people below the poverty line in rural areas at 16.5% in 2010, compared to 14.9% of people in urban areas, meaning that it is essential to develop solutions to provide these areas with consistent, high-quality access to these technologies so that the poor residents in these areas can enjoy the benefits of the technologies. The FCC has taken steps to ensure that the "call completion" problems in rural areas are reduced by issuing an order that should reduce the types of practices that lead to such degradation of service. They also have an initiative to bring broadband Internet access to rural communities.

But communities should also be working towards these ends themselves. It is essential to have education programs in place so that communities can get a sense of why they should have quality telecommunications access and how they should work with providers to prove that there is a demand for consistent, high-quality access to such services. These education programs would give low-income rural communities the resources they need to fight for these essential services and help to improve the lives of many of their residents, particularly their low-income residents who rely on these technologies to stay afloat.

[This is the fourth post in an ongoing series about the intersection of poverty/homelessness and technology. The articles will be collected here.]

Source: http://www.newhopefamilyshelter.org/content/accessing-tech-rural-communications

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