SaskTel has announced internet service improvements for 34 communities in Saskatchewan – but Creighton and Denare Beach are not on that list.
The Saskatchewan Crown corporation will be expanding its High Speed Fusion Internet network to a number of small rural communities around the province, including Moosomin, Porcupine Plane, Wakaw, Shellbrook and Wynyard.
Work on towers near Aberdeen, Allan, Dundurn, Marshall, Silver Park and Weyburn is expected to wrap up next month.
None of the communities listed by SaskTel are in northern Saskatchewan – the nearest community to Flin Flon and Creighton is nearly 400 km away by road.
No improvements for northern Saskatchewan internet have been announced in the past year.
The company announced in April 2016 that it would be completing a three year, $30 million project to enhance internet service in northern Saskatchewan. As part of the project, $10 million was spent on fixing the existing radio backhaul network between Creighton and Denare Beach.
Microwave radio system improvements between Sandy Bay and Pelican Narrows and a fibre optic line between La Ronge and Points North Landing were also included in the project.
Mayor Bruce Fidler said the service in the community has not been up to par – he is skeptical that there has been any improvement at all.
“The last conversations we had with them [SaskTel] were about a year ago when they did their big upgrade – supposedly – in this area.”
When pressed on what Fidler meant by “supposedly,” he added, “They spent a lot of money and did some work, but I personally have seen no improvements.”
The improvements increased internet download speeds from 1.5 megabits per second to five. While the changes show more than a three-fold increase, it is still well behind the national average of 30 Mbps, according to broadband speed testing firm Ookla.
SaskTel’s cheapest internet plan offers download speeds up to five Mbps, but more expensive plans do not guarantee best service in the north. The company’s lowest-end InfiNET plan features a minimum download speed threshold of 20 Mbps, four times higher than the speeds reported in Creighton.
“It’s got to improve, absolutely. Not only for personal use, but for business. It’s got to be better,” said Fidler.
Fidler also said the issue of slow internet speed could be something taken to the Regional Economic Development Committee, saying that fast internet plays an important role in attracting outside business.
“Most definitely. It would be a great asset for attracting any type of business. People live and die by that now,” he said.
