Gigabit fiber 19th Ave

[schandds]

I live on 19th Ave in the Outer Sunset near Moraga.. I noticed there is Gigabit fiber for my neighbors on 20th Ave and planned Gigabit fiber for 18th Ave starting April 2017. Are there any plans for installation on 19th Ave?

[miken]

19th Avenue utilizes underground utilities and as of right now, San Francisco does not support micro-trenching so we have no easy way to get Fiber to those areas. Due to that, 19th Avenue is not part of our current build out.

[flex-brannigan]

Now that SF allows micro-trenching, what's the status of 19th AVE?

My neighbors over the back fence on 20th AVE have fiber access. Will you guys work with me if I can supply outdoor grade CAT6 to the nearest pole?

[dane]

Now that SF allows micro-trenching, what's the status of 19th AVE?

My neighbors over the back fence on 20th AVE have fiber access. Will you guys work with me if I can supply outdoor grade CAT6 to the nearest pole?

I don't think SF allows microtrenching yet. And the draft ordinance I saw was not viable; it was only in the sidewalk.

[flex-brannigan]

Thanks for reply Dane. My brilliant plan is pretty much a non-starter anyway, as I discovered yesterday that the poles on 20th Ave are on the west side of the street.

After talking to a neighbor several years ago, trenching on 19th AVE brings up some unique regulatory headaches, as it's also a state highway.

Is there any chance you could talk to PG&E about using their conduit for streets like 19th AVE? My company's ISP back in the day was IP Networks [which was swallowed up by Level3 a few years ago], and they built their original network using PG&E conduit. Maybe you guys can work out a deal.

[dane]

Is there any chance you could talk to PG&E about using their conduit for streets like 19th AVE? My company's ISP back in the day was IP Networks [which was swallowed up by Level3 a few years ago], and they built their original network using PG&E conduit. Maybe you guys can work out a deal.

Conduit leasing is in some cases possible, but generally not feasible. And for physical space reasons, it's more likely to be possible in commercial districts: there are more conduits, with more available space. In residential areas, there are smaller and fewer conduits, and they're generally occupied.

But cost is the other factor. Using conduit owned by the incumbent phone company is roughly 20x the cost of leasing equivilent space on poles. And when it comes to PG&E conduit, the cost is nearly 200x. For a rough example, for homes with a typical frontage width in SF, the cost result would be roughly $600 per subscriber per year for the conduit leasing. Additionally, construction costs are far higher, and much more widely variable. All of these factors really blow up the premise of an inexpensive gigabit service.

[Jay S]

Thanks for the context on conduit leasing Dane. I'm still secretly hoping some blocks will work out w/ conduit leasing or sidewalk microtrenching (perhaps the one where your CO is, hint hint ;) ) even if it seems highly unlikely given the continued messiness of the SFDPW and City's approach to this type of development. It also doesn't help they seemed to be putting a lot of energy into a city wide broadband plan that's 8-10 years away, when compromising on street/fiber access is a weeks-months way endeavor

[dane]

True. And I do wonder if the issues with directional boring and microtrenching will be resolved, but only when the city is ready to build their own network.

[flex-brannigan]

Do you have any suggestions on what residents of 19th AVE can do to help the city move this in the right direction?

[dane]

Do you have any suggestions on what residents of 19th AVE can do to help the city move this in the right direction?

You could tell your supervisor you support efforts to bring microtrenching and directional boring to SF. But, it must be permitted in the street, as sidewalk-only isn't viable.