Getting Connected – the first step
One of my priorities as Alderman would be to get DSL coverage for all of the 25th Ward and the entire City of St. Louis. We cannot expect to compete with other city wards and the region without offering such a basic service to residents and businesses. Right now residents both West and East of Grand cannot get DSL.
I suspect SBC looked at demographics and decided our household incomes didn’t justify the expense of adding another switching station. We need to demonstrate sufficient demand to make the expense at the very least a break even proposition for SBC.
To that end I’ve been on SBC’s list for over 3 years. Every couple of months I get an email from them saying service is still not available for my phone number. But, they know I’m still interested. At times when I’ve been on the phone with SBC I’ve made it a point to remind them I’d love their DSL service but can’t get it.
Click here to go to SBC’s residential page where you can enter your phone number to check DSL availability in your area. Please get on their list to show your interest. You are under no obligation to get DSL when it becomes available. If you have multiple phone numbers or say a business in the area enter every number.
The first step is to show interest and the second step is for the Board of Aldermen to apply political pressure to get coverage for the entire City of St. Louis. We’ve got to show SBC we are here and that we matter too!
– Steve
I have heard about this same problem in neighborhoods in north city, but did not believe it. Sure enough, it turned out to be true.
How is [it] possible for a regulated utility provider to carry on what amounts to economic redlining?
No DSL available in some neighborhoods of the city of St. Louis…why don’t they just go ahead and pull out the phone lines the next time they’re in the neighborhood?
As a realtor, try telling someone they cannot get DSL service in their chosen city neighborhood, and see what sort of reaction you get…
RB
[Exactly! As a REALTOR® it is my legal obligation to make this type of fact known to buyers. I hate it when they look outside my area for this reason. It is 2005 – we need DSL in the entire city! – Steve]
I once had DSL service through SBC. I’m told (by SBC) the FCC regulation changed which not longer permits them to offer the service to me. It is a “distance to the switch” issue. However, I can get DSL service “through AOL” because they are permitted (again FCC) to offer service to those located at a greater distance (from the switch). I suspect this will need to be addressed at the Federal level.
Is there a specific way (that you have in place) to address this from the Board to SBC or from the Board to FCC?
[6:15pm – The solution is not to stretch the amount of distance permitted from a switching station. I’m too far away by all standards. The solution is to persuade SBC to add additional switching stations as necessary to cover the entire City of St. Louis. A board resolution would be a start to pushing them in the right direction. It would certainly draw attention to the issue. – Steve]
Forget about DSL in this area. SBC won’t locate a switching station closer to this area. It just doesn’t make financial sense to them when they have to open their lines to competitors. Charter provides a great service. Check them out. Their speed screams compared to DSL. Trust me on all of this. After two “DSL” and a T1, charter finally hooked up the lines.
[I understand that SBC has to open their lines to competitors. I want to see the numbers – I can’t simply accept that we’ll never have DSL service. That is unacceptable. It was feasible in other areas – why not here?
I have Charter high-speed now. I spend $45/month. I think I could get a bit cheaper plan. DSL ranges from $20-$27/month depending upon which company you chose and if you have long distance with them. Static IP address is something I’d like that I can’t get with Charter. I had that with the ADSL line I had previously but at $115/month it wasn’t worth it. Face it, we need DSL as an option. – Steve]