Versailles is second ‘gigabit’ city in the state. Nicholasville, Richmond online soon
Versailles recently became the second city in Kentucky to have high-speed internet access throughout the Woodford County seat.
MetroNet, an Evansville, Ind., based Internet company, recently completed the installation of a fiber-optic broadband network in Versailles. It invested $4.5 million in the installation of hundreds of thousands of feet of fiber in the city.
Lexington became the first “gigabit” city in Kentucky when MetroNet completed the installation of fiber in Kentucky’s second-largest city in August after more than two years of construction. The designation as a gigabit city is based on widespread access to high-speed internet.
Gigabit speed is equivalent to transferring data at 1,000 megabits per second.
Chattanooga, Tenn., was the first in the country to build out a network capable of delivering high-speed internet. Other cities soon followed. Lexington is believed to be the largest city in the country where residents have access to high-speed Internet.
“With Versailles deemed a Gigabit city our residents and businesses will be at an advantage with access to 100 percent fiber-optic network,” said Versailles Mayor Brian Traugott.
MetroNet said in a recent release that it already has thousands of customers in Versailles. The company will also continue to install fiber-optic cables as the city grows.
Access to high-speed internet was considered a key to luring and keeping businesses prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Now with so many people working and learning from home, high-speed internet has become more of a necessity.
Versailles and Lexington will not be the last two cities in Kentucky with high-speed internet access citywide.
MetroNet is also currently completing similar fiber-optic cable build-outs in Richmond, Nicholasville and Wilmore.
The build-out of the infrastructure in Nicholasville is largely completed, Nicholasville city officials said. It was completed ahead of schedule. Installing fiber-optic lines began in Wilmore last month. That project is nearly halfway completed and high-speed internet is expected to be available citywide in April, Wilmore city officials said.
According to MetroNet’s website, the majority of construction in Richmond is also completed.
Richmond City Manager Rob E. Minerich said MetroNet should be completed by Christmas and will come back in January for some minor clean up and maintenance. “Completed fiber is currently up and running,” Minerich said.
