On Nov. 7, 2017, the Town of Athabasca and the surrounding area was disconnected from the world for about 12 hours.
A third-party contractor doing work in the area cut the only internet cord into town, which cut the internet at homes and business. It meant that some local businesses turned into cash-only locales for the day, and even town council members had problems accessing the documents for their meeting that night.
That was a half-day of problems, but internet and cell phone outages are a more regular reality in many other areas of the county, as well.
This past week, Athabasca County invited Lac La Biche County to one of their regular meetings to give a presentation on what they were doing on the subject of broadband communications and cell coverage within its borders.
A Lac La Biche County councillor also mentioned that he wanted to run for a spot on the board of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to drive some change for broadband in Alberta and across the country.
We commend Athabasca County for investigating its options, and for speaking with Lac La Biche County council members about this issue, looking at how our nearby neighbours are dealing with it.
As the rest of the world progresses with technology that includes door-to-door delivery food (and people, through taxiing services), our lack of population makes it difficult to get these services off the ground here.
The occasionally-shoddy internet and cell services only hinder those projects, as well.
That said, we also have people from our region helping produce some locally-grown apps, like Sheila Willis’ work on the History Check Mobile App. We also have some web-savvy locals growing their businesses with online sales, like Michelle Bishop with Elle’s Closet.
And so, we look forward to seeing what Athabasca County comes up with on this issue in the future.
