High-speed internet is coming to 20,000 homes in Franklin and Chittenden counties

Dan D'Ambrosio, Burlington Free Press
·2 min read

Consolidated Communications is in the midst of bringing high-speed internet service to more than 20,000 households in Franklin and Chittenden counties through its subsidiary, Fidium Fiber, according to a senior executive with the company.

"We started building out our Fidium Fiber in 2020," said Jeff Austin, senior director of fiber build strategy. "We’ve been doing this for a few years. Franklin and Chittenden counties started building this year, in 2023."

Consolidated crews were out on a warm afternoon on Wednesday in the Fletcher and Fairfax areas, along Goose Pond Road, installing the black fiber optic cable that carries 72 strands of optical fibers roughly the size of human hair, according to lineman Mark Johnston. Johnston was working with two other linemen to install the cable, one of whom was at the top of a utility pole.

Mark Johnston, a lineman for Consolidated Cable, holds a fiber optic cable on Oct. 4, 2023, on Goose Pond Road in Fairfax, where he was helping to install the cable to bring high-speed internet to homes and businesses in the area.
Mark Johnston, a lineman for Consolidated Cable, holds a fiber optic cable on Oct. 4, 2023, on Goose Pond Road in Fairfax, where he was helping to install the cable to bring high-speed internet to homes and businesses in the area.

By the end of the year, Fidium Fiber will be available to more than more than 10,000 homes and businesses in each of Chittenden and Franklin counties, and to more than 110,000 homes and businesses in Vermont, according to Austin.

Where is the fiber being installed?

The Chittenden County towns getting Fidium Fiber are:

  • Colchester

  • Essex Junction

  • Essex Town

  • Williston

Tyler Eastman, a lineman for Consolidated Communications, climbs a utility pole on Oct. 4, 2023, on Goose Pond Road in Fairfax to install high-speed fiber optic cable.
Tyler Eastman, a lineman for Consolidated Communications, climbs a utility pole on Oct. 4, 2023, on Goose Pond Road in Fairfax to install high-speed fiber optic cable.

The Franklin County towns getting Fidium Fiber are:

  • St. Albans Town

  • St. Albans City

  • Swanton

  • Georgia

  • Fairfield

  • East Fairfield

  • Bakersfield

  • Fairfax

  • Fletcher

An additional 5,000 homes and businesses in Addison County are getting Fidium Fiber, Austin said, in the following towns:

  • Hancock

  • Middlebury

  • Ripton

  • Salisbury

  • Weybridge

Consolidated has invested more than $23 million in Franklin and Chittenden counties, according to Austin. If you add in Addison County, the total goes to $28 million.

"Fiber is a gamechanger," Austin said. "The reason we’re investing in it is the ability it provides to work from home, which attracts businesses and people to live in these towns."

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosi@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Consolidated Communications ramps up fiber optic internet