SCRTC Moves Closer to a Fully Connected Network
Kenny McGuire
Inch by inch, foot by foot, mile by mile, South Central Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (SCRTC) is closing in on becoming a fully fiber network.
SCRTC General Manager Jeff Eaton says bringing fiber to every cooperative member is still 3 to 4 years away, but he sees the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. “We’ve been budgeting about $12 million per year, so we’re trying to get it done,” he says. “We’re around 88% of our customers converted to fiber right now. So, we’re down to the last 3,400 customers having everything converted to fiber.”
Crews can install 200 to 250 miles of fiber optic cable each year and had about 640 route miles remaining as winter approached at the end of 2024.
“That’s the goal,” says Kenny McGuire, SCRTC engineering supervisor. “That’s where we will be at the end of 2024 and what we expect in 2025.”
Each year is different as crews face unique challenges that can both enhance and delay construction efforts. SCRTC plows as much fiber optic as possible underground to lessen the possibilities of future outages, but inclement weather and local geography play roles in the project.
“It’s very rough, beautiful country here in our part of the world,” Kenny says. “2 of our main challenges are the weather, because we can’t plow when it’s nasty out, and the rock. We’re sitting on 1 of the world’s largest karst areas, and we’re right on Mammoth Cave’s front door, so we deal with a lot of hard rock.”
