Gigabit Infrastructure

Broadband networks and Internet connectivity are vital for business. From business records stored in the cloud, to mobile communications devices, to new releases that demand scalable broadband capacity, today’s businesses need robust, reliable, secure broadband. ultraMontgomery supports broadband connectivity at all levels from building access to conduit and fiber network connectivity, to shorter distance low-latency fiber routes to Ashburn VA and other local data centers. (90 percent of East Coast Internet traffic, 45 percent of all world Internet traffic, and about 35 percent of all US Internet traffic, travels through an Ashburn data center.)  ultraMontgomery focuses on leasing spare capacity in County assets, creating public private partnerships to cost-effective expand fiber where there is need, supporting design standards to have more build fiber and conduit included in new construction, and leveraging design guidelines.

• Montgomery County Broadband Map and Providers

  Montgomery County is served by 15 commercial broadband service providers and additional research, educational, and government networks.  Five commercial providers and Montgomery County have shared share route data.  Providers may also be contacted directly to obtain route, capacity and pricing information.

  • Broadband Map
  • Broadband Network Providers Serving Montgomery County (2018)
• Ashburn Fiber Routes

  The goal of the Ashburn Fiber Route project is to create shorter-distance routes between Montgomery County and Ashburn Virginia data centers. Most broadband connectivity from the County – especially in the growing Life Sciences Center/Great Seneca Science Center in Gaithersburg and Germantown – travels longer routes to Ashburn, north to Point of Rocks, MD, or south-to-east-to-west through Washington DC and northern Virginia.

  • Update on Ashburn Fiber Project (April 2018)

    Crown Castle (through its purchase of Lightower) opened a shorter distance, lower latency route under the Potomac River near White’s Ferry Rd and has partnered with local data center Atlantech Online, to expand connectivity to this route.

    Montgomery County is working with Dark Fiber & Infrastructure (which purchased USA Fiber) and other fiber providers to expand access to a second Potomac River fiber crossing route at Sycamore Landing.

  • Technical White Paper Explaining Benefits of Shorter-Distance Fiber Routes Between Montgomery County and Ashburn Data Centers (July 2015)
• Fiber-Conduit Network in Viva White Oak

  As part of the Viva White Oak development, Montgomery County is constructing a road, and ultraMontgomery is working to have communications fiber and conduit constructed as part of the planned new road.

  Viva White Oak Fiber Network – Conceptual Diagrams (August 2018)

  The goal is to enable new businesses tenants in the White Oak area to have access to multiple broadband network within days of move-in, instead of months. The newly placed infrastructure can be leveraged to provide conduit space or dark fiber for carriers looking to serve the companies in Viva White Oak and expand connectivity to data centers located in East County.

  In addition, the fiber and conduit is being designed to support high capacity “backhaul” that will enable future small cell and/or 5G wireless deployments.

  White Oak is home to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). One in four dollars in the US Economy is spent on drugs and devices regulated by the FDA. The County is supporting many new developments, just beyond the FDA gates in White Oak. Viva White Oak is a 300-acre planned life sciences hub that will include 7 million square feet of commercial and residential development. Several other development projects include construction of a Washington Adventist Hospital. Better broadband network connectivity will support business growth as well as collaboration between businesses in the White Oak area and leading universities and research institutions.

• Conduits in Commercial Areas -- Bethesda Conduit Pilot Project

  The County is working to assess demand for installing conduit networks in commercial areas. To assess interest and determine technical specifications, the County is hosting focus group meetings with broadband service providers and the Montgomery County Planning Department.

  Conduit Concept Area Maps (September 2018)

• East County Fiber Highway

  The County has completed construction to extend its fiber optic network, FiberNet, north from White Oak to the edge of the Patuxent River. The County will be connecting FiberNet to the Inter-County Broadband Network (ICBN) in Howard County, to facilitate access to Montgomery County data centers and IT businesses by other users of the ICBN. The East County Highway will be used to support connectivity at Route 29 Flash (Bus Rapid Transit) route shelters. The County is also working to developed Internet of Things deployments along the East County fiber highway.

• Purple Line Fiber

  The County worked with Maryland transit agencies to determine the economic feasibility to install fiber along Purple Line route. However, it was determined that there were no cost savings to install fiber along this route, while operating fiber along the light rail line would create significant challenges. Montgomery County is working with the State to secure some fibers along the route to support improvement research and educational network access to the University of Maryland at College Park and UM’s Mid-Atlantic broadband network, MAX.