Dig Once: How Federal, State, and Local Governments Can Reduce the Cost of Broadband Deployment

Millions of Americans struggle to access affordable, high-speed internet. A key reason is the lack of infrastructure: Fiber-optic cables, the technology most capable of supporting fast upload and download speeds, pass only half of American homes. In some cases, internet service providers can install new fiber-optic cables aerially on utility poles. But in most cases, ISPs choose to serve an area by installing cables underground. Digging up roads and repairing them accounts for 75-90 percent of the cost of laying fiber-optic cables in conduit underground. Minimizing this cost can go a long way toward universal access to high-speed internet. The idea of Dig Once is one straightforward solution to reduce this gap: Whenever a government digs up a road for any reason (e.g., construction, maintenance), without existing fiber nearby, it should also install infrastructure capable of housing fiber-optic cables for broadband.