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SPECIAL REPORTS
Tower-building expected to fill cell dead zones
Marshall University senior Paul Howard talks on his cell phone as he helps new students move into the new Marshall University dorms on Friday, Aug. 22, 2008, in Huntington. Paul says, "If I didn't have a cell phone and good coverage I'd die."
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HUNTINGTON -- The all-too-familiar experience of dropping a call may soon become a less frequent aggravation for cell phone users as companies build up their networks in Cabell County.
Areas that currently receive sporadic coverage soon will have reception with the addition of new towers, which relay cell phone signals, said J.R. Van Ooteghem, assistant director of Cabell County 911.
"Cell coverage in Cabell County is getting better every day," Van Ooteghem said. "We've seen a higher level of commitment from cell phone companies to get more rural areas of the county covered. They're building more towers and targeting them to cover areas that have never been covered before."
Leading the way is Verizon Wireless, which announced in late July that it has built at least 40 towers in the Tri-State since early 2007 and is setting up stores. All those new towers are expected to be fully operational sometime this fall, said Laura Merritt, regional spokeswoman for Verizon.
Verizon customers already can see the difference as there is no longer a "roaming" signal on their phones. Roaming occurs when cell users travel outside their carrier's local service area. It allows users to continue to make and receive calls when operating in another carrier's service coverage area.
With shared roaming agreements between the cell phone companies, the increase in the number of Verizon towers means better coverage for everyone, Van Ooteghem said.
Marshall University senior Paul Howard said he's noticed what seems to be improved coverage for his cell phone. Previously, Howard said he was unable to get a cell signal while in certain Marshall buildings but thinks the new towers should allow him to pick up a cell signal.
"I get great service here," Howard said. "Since they put up the new towers I've had better service."
Heather Aliff of Beckley said she felt more comfortable knowing that more cell towers were built in the area and she could reach her daughter, a Marshall freshman who was in Huntington Friday for the start of classes next week. The more towers built in Cabell County, she said, the easier it would be to keep in contact with her daughter during an emergency.
"It's good to know we don't have any problems with coverage here in Huntington," Aliff said.
According to Verizon's current coverage map, West Virginia is one of the largest areas without consistent cell coverage in the eastern United States.
The state's uneven topography is one of the major difficulties cell phone companies face in trying to blanket an area with cell coverage, Van Ooteghem said. A common myth about cell phone towers is that they cover miles of territory. In downtown Huntington, towers only cover a couple of blocks and out in the county cell towers have been few and far between, Van Ooteghem said.
Another major concern expressed by cell companies about setting up shop in the state has to do with determining if there was a viable and quality cell phone market in West Virginia.
"Before we began waving the Verizon flag announcing we're here, we had to make sure the network is at the caliber our customers expect," Merritt said. "We've invested millions in the Charleston-Huntington network to speed them up (to other networks around the country)."
Verizon has built 20 towers in West Virginia, six in Ohio and 14 in Kentucky. West Virginia sites include towers in Ceredo, Barboursville, Ona, Mineral Springs and several spread out in Huntington.
AT&T also has been making strides to bring better service and technology to the area. Van Ooteghem said AT&T already has upgraded its existing antennas in Huntington with its new 3G technology. The technology allows iPhone users, and other AT&T smart phone users, to receive broadband Internet signals quicker. The more advanced the broadband, the faster it is to navigate the Internet with smart phones.
Van Ooteghem said cell phone companies' new towers mean that their customers not only get better phone service, but they now have more reliable wireless broadband service to use their phones for Internet services. With the combination of private investments and strides taken by the City of Huntington and the county, wireless Internet may soon be available all around the area.
"Broadband coverage means you're not tied down to a 'hot spot' in a coffee shop, your dorm room or just the campus," he said.
According to the Federal Communications Commission's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, 34 antennas are registered in Huntington for communications purposes. Alltell Communications LLC and New Cingular Wireless PCS LLC each have three towers registered in Huntington.
The FCC, however, only requires companies to register their towers or antennas when they are 200 feet or taller or within five miles of a airport, so the companies likely have more towers than that transmitting signals in the area.
Statewide efforts
Though cell coverage in West Virginia has been minimal compared with other regions, states and counties also are working to fill in the dead zones.
Byron Harris, head of the state Public Service Commission's consumer advocate division, said the Legislature created the Wireless Tower Access Assistance Fund in 2005 to promote cellular technologies. The purpose was to provide money to county governments to subsidize the construction of towers for emergency services. The fund is supported by a $3 E911 monthly fee paid by all cell phone customers in the state.
The Legislature has capped the yearly total amount of the fund at $1 million to fund all approved projects in the state.
Seven counties were awarded funds between 2006 and 2007 and three have received grants this year, including Cabell County. It received $190,000 from the state fund and the county EMS is supplying the rest, about $150,000.
Earlier this month, the county commission gave the go-ahead to Cabell County Emergency Medical Services to build a road and communication tower in the Salt Rock area. The 320-foot tower will provide for fire, police and EMS services in an area that has communications troubles.
Van Ooteghem said construction already has begun, and it is scheduled to be done by the end of the year. The county now is in contract negotiations with a cell phone company about leasing space for an antenna on the tower. Van Ooteghem said the partnership could potentially provide Salt Rock residents with cellular and broadband Internet access.
