Google Starts Running Fiber In Kansas City

New submitter Kiyyik writes "After weeks of wrangling over shared space on utility poles, Google and the KC Board of Public Utilities have gotten their act together and Google is starting to wire Kansas City, Kansas today. They will be paying attachment fees and hanging the fiber optic lines in the space on the poles reserved for telecommunications. The Kansas City, Missouri side is still on track to begin a few months behind the Kansas side."

Re:I can't wait

[Shatrat]

You're correct. I work in this industry.
UG fiber is several times more expensive per mile than Aerial fiber. It's somewhat less vulnerable to cuts, but much more difficult to locate and repair those cuts when they happen (especially rat chews or horizontal boring damage) so it's a bit of a wash really.

Re:Google

[peragrin]

Most likely not. However google is laying fiber where AT&T won't even update its breaking copper in most cities.

Re:Still a bit confused...

[Hadlock]

Not mentioned: Kansas City is a combined city-county government. That roughly halves the amount of city level and county level paperwork, only one board to brib^H^H^H^H inform, one set of telecommunication laws to study etc etc. Many other medium-sized cities have distinct city and county level governments (in addition to State government).
 
TL;DR Kansas City has one fewer governing body & sets of laws/jurisdiction (2 vs 3) than most cities it's size do.

Re:I can't wait

[Rasperin]

As a Shawnee, KS (just about 5minutes from North Kansas City, KS) resident I can only think of one tornado that has come close to this area in the last 12 years (I think there might have been one in 1999) and the amount of damage it did was rip a few roof tiles off a house. Tornados do a pretty good job of staying out of this area, however that doesn't mean we don't get 70-100mph winds every so often that knock down said poles. Honestly, those days seem to do more damage in this area than tornados do.

Re:My wasted youth

[interkin3tic]

It was supposed to be A. By "Not so much as a pager" I meant I did not even have a pager, let alone a smartphone. I don't consider myself an expert in writing, so I apologize if that was poor writing.

Re:I can't wait

[Shatrat]

A horizontal borer is used to put in underground cable and conduit without trenching. Its the only way to get across railway or highway but if you hit another cable or utility its the end of the damn world.