Cedar Rapids still working on 130 miles of publicly owend fiber-optic cable

CEDAR RAPIDS - It's been nearly six years now since a consultant recommended that the city of Cedar Rapids, Linn County and the Cedar Rapids school district build their own fiber-optic system.

The three entities are still at it, and over the next two years, they should have some 130 miles of publicly-owned, fiber-optic cable in place at an estimated cost of about $10.5 million, says Doug Wilson, project manager for capital improvements in the city's Public Works Department.

The project is designed to upgrade the city's connection to some 225 traffic-control signals in Cedar Rapids and then to reach public buildings, facilities and schools along the way.

This week, the city, which is managing the project, will seek bids to purchase 66 miles of fiber-optic cable for the project at an estimated cost of $1.7 million.

Another 34 miles of the project will be bid this summer and be paid for, in part, by a federal grant designed to make sure that the 911 systems for the cities of Cedar Rapids and Marion and Linn County are connected, the city's Wilson said on Monday.

A first phase of the project was in place in early 2008 and connected public buildings in and around the downtown and along the Cedar River. All the buildings flooded in June 2008. Some emergency repairs to the existing piece of the system have been made and more will be done this summer, Wilson said.

Three other pieces of the project were awarded to contractors in the past year.

The public fiber-optic system, Wilson said, is intended to improve the reliability and capacity of data transfer and communications for the city, county and schools.