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1. So what is broadband?

Broadband is any connection that allows data to move from the internet to your device quickly.  When it's slow, it's an internet connection but it's not broadband.  In Virginia, broadband is defined as a connection with speeds of greater than 10 megabits per second download - when things load from the internet to your computer or device - and 1 megabit per second upload - which is when you send something from your computer or device out to the internet.

2. Goochland County has halted Verizon from expanding Fios into the County?

Verizon has made an independent business decision not to expand Fios into Goochland.  They determined their Verizon Wireless products are solutions for broadband in rural localities.  All providers including Verizon are welcome and encouraged to expand service to Goochland citizens.

3. Goochland County's franchise agreement with Comcast is exclusive and limits competition?

Goochland's franchise agreement with Comcast is non-exclusive, other providers can offer service if they choose too.  Franchise agreements only pertain to cable television service, they cannot and do not regulate the provision of broadband service.  All providers including Verizon are welcome and encouraged to expand service to Goochland citizens.

4. Is Goochland County limiting access to the large amount of Fiber that runs throughout different roads prohibiting it from providing internet to our Residents?

Goochland County does not regulate the utilization of fiber in public rights-of-way, nor does the county own much of the fiber in the county.  The county does have the ability to leverage a length of fiber that has recently been extended from the County Administration Building to Byrd Elementary School.  The county is willing to consider access/lease space of county assets (towers, fiber, facilities, property, and existing infrastructure), and to work with providers in a manner that is encouraging, flexible, cost effective, and values the investment of broadband providers.

5. Isn't 5G cellular service going to solve all this?

While you may have what seems like a lot of towers, you don't have enough for 5G.  We are certain, here's why.

5G, unlike previous improvements in cellular technology, is going to require transmitters to be VERY close together, sometimes as close as a few hundred yards apart.  Plus, towers and transmitters don't do anything on their own; they need to be connected by fiber-optic lines.

While 5G may roll out to the Commonwealth's urban cores sometime in the next few years, it won't likely reach anywhere not currently served by broadband service anytime soon, and even when it does, providers are going to need a ton of fiber optic capacity to make a 5G network work.