Later this year, a new service is set to be added to the range of internet options available in Gorham. This will include an upgrade to the physical internet infrastructure installed along a number of Gorham’s streets and roads.
OTELCO, a multi-state provider of local telecommunication and broadband internet services, plans to begin installing its advanced fiber optic lines along 37 miles of Gorham’s streets and highways by late summer. This installation work has been planned for several years, and should be completed sometime in the fall.
At that same time, OTELCO plans to begin offering Gorham residents and businesses along these routes a level of internet services previously unavailable here.
OTELCO’s main fiber optic will enter Gorham in the South Windham-Little Falls area, then extend along Route 202 and Rt 25 to the center of Gorham Village and south along South Street (Route 114). Numerous branch lines will extend off this main line, in order to serve many of the adjoining neighborhoods and streets.
Altogether, OTELCO plans to install 522 miles of fiber optic cable in 10 Maine communities during 2021 as part of a major investment they are currently making in several states. A local spokesperson for OTELCO, Trevor Jones, has stated that the company will soon have the capacity to serve approximately 2,500 new customers in Gorham.
Graph showing OTELCO initial coverage area in Gorham.Jones also noted the installation process should not cause significant disruption to the neighborhoods where it is taking place, as most of the cable will be installed on existing utility poles owned by Consolidated Communications. He added that once the service begins operating, OTELCO’s new customers should notice a significant improvement in both upload and download speeds, with monthly rates comparable to what other internet providers are currently charging.
OTELCO has the ability to add even more capacity in Gorham if increased demand allows them to install additional miles of cable.
OTELCO also has deep roots in Maine’s telecommunications industry, through their connection to two of Maine’s first telephone companies, both established in the late 19th century. This connection was made about 20 years ago, when OTELCO purchased Pine Tree Telephone and Telegraph Company (serving Gray and New Gloucester since 1899) and Saco River Telegraph and Telephone Company (serving Buxton, Hollis, and nearby towns since 1889).
OTELCO still provides traditional landline telephone service in several towns in Maine, as well as in dozens of communities in seven states, ranging from Missouri, Alabama and West Virginia to Maine and Vermont.
OTELCO CEO Richard Clark has stated, “The OTELCO family of companies has a long-standing tradition of delivering state of the art communication technologies to our subscribers in the states we serve. Today that technology is futureproof fiber, and we couldn’t be more excited about bringing the technology to Gorham.”
OTELCO is headquartered in Alabama, with a local office in Portland. To find out if a particular street or neighborhood will be part of OTELCO’s initial service area in Gorham, potential customers can access an OTELCO web page at www.otelco.com/builds.