Broadband service available to more homes near Kellyville, Okla.

TDS® announces the ARRA broadband stimulus project is now available to some homes; residents around Cyril, Elgin, Fletcher, and Inola will gain access to high-speed Internet service before summer.

TDS Telecom (TDS®) announces part of its American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus-funded broadband Internet project in Oklahoma — around Kellyville — is accessible to some residents.

Construction on the stimulus-funded project should wrap up early summer. Once complete, about 900 residents will gain access to a high-speed Internet connection, including people living around Cyril, Elgin, Fletcher, and Inola.

Nearly 40 miles of fiber optics cabling is being installed and 25 cabinets (which protect the advanced network electronics) are being placed throughout TDS’ Oklahoma Communication Systems company to provide high-speed Internet access to more residents and businesses. TDS will alert customers when service is accessible or customers can call 888-225-5837 to sign up.

TDS is receiving funding for 44 projects, including this one in Oklahoma, from the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS) as part of the ARRA.

Nationwide, more than 95 percent of TDS customers already have access to high-speed Internet service. TDS is intent on providing as many remaining customers with broadband connectivity as possible. According to TDS, federal stimulus funds are helping to close the gap and deliver Internet connectivity to more households. Already, with ARRA grant funding, TDS has expanded high-speed Internet access to more than 28,000 households across the country.

For background information and updates, visit www.tdstelecom.com/stimulus.

# # #