Serving Central Illinois since 2002.
Connect Champaign County FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions - Farmers & Agricultural Ventures
Volo Internet + Tech, a Champaign County based Internet Service Provider, is bringing super-fast, super-reliable fiber optic internet service to most rural homes, farms, businesses, and institutions in rural Champaign County that do not currently have true broadband service available to them, thanks to $11.8 million in grant funding and other support from the Champaign County Board, Champaign County Farm Bureau, and State of Illinois.
This project will transform the way Champaign County residents live, do business, learn, stay healthy, and enjoy life in our rural community.
It’s a big project and we know you have questions. We’re here to answer them!
What will fiber internet do for me and my agricultural work or business?
Access to broadband is essential for farmers like you to help you follow commodity markets, communicate with your customers, gain access to new markets around the region and world and to help keep you or regulatory compliant.
This technology can also help you with farm safety (security cameras, for example) and farm-to-farm and on-farm communications with your farm hands, family, implements, and colleagues.
Fiber makes internet connections possible in otherwise impossible places, can boost phone service, and increase the reliability of communications.
Fiber internet will do for today’s farms what electrification did for them last century—keeping them relevant for decades to come!What construction approach and technology will you use to run your fiber optics? Will it damage my drain tiles or farm fields?
Champaign County’s rich agricultural land is the envy of the world, and it’s critically important that preservation of that heritage is top of mind throughout this project.
Thankfully, the equipment and technology used to lay fiber optic cables is minimally invasive to the land surrounding where fiber cable is laid.
Before any installation, Volo’s team (including specially trained contractors with specialized equipment) will conduct a thorough site survey to assess the terrain, soil condition, existing utilities (including drain tiles), and any potential obstacles to work around. This survey includes conversations with landowners to assess drain tile placement. This survey will help us identify and avoid or mitigate possible challenges that may arise during installation.
To install conduit for the fiber we’ll be using multiple methods---mostly directional boring, plowing, and hydro-excavation, as needed. Open trenching is rare on this type of project, but is an option if needed in a given situation.
Regardless of the equipment and method used, special attention is always given to achieving a consistent depth and avoiding obstacles (like drain tiles).
It is possible that during installation, challenges may arise. There could be unexpected obstacles (large rocks, unexpected drain tiles, etc), difficult terrain to navigate, or inclement weather conditions. Our team is lithe, trained, and adept, and for any and all obstacles we encounter, we promise to take pro-active measures to find no- or low-impact solutions and to fully repair anything damaged. This might include using specialized equipment like directional drills for challenging terrains, using certain insulation during harsh weather conditions, or implementing contingency plans in case of unforeseen circumstances.
If you need to access a part of my field, how long will you be there and what will my field look like once you’re done?3>
Because of the modern technology and equipment we use, there will be minimal impact to your field or land. We use minimally invasive plows, directional boring equipment, and vacuum excavators to install the conduit underground, but only after a full site survey and a landowner conversation has been conducted to learn where utilities are, drain tiles, and other items we need to work around and take care of and avoided.
How long we will be working across your property depends on a few factors. The planned fiber route is one – whether the route spans your entire property frontage. Also factoring in is how “clean” the route run is – if we need to work around utilities, drain tiles, or challenging terrain. Weather can also play a factor, of course. The overall size of your property – the length of the run we’ll need to make will also play a role in how long our team will need to spend on your portion of the project. During the whole period, our crew will be out close to the road, avoiding your property as much as possible beyond the work areas needed. They will also be working as quickly and efficiently as possible to complete the work in your area, as we have hundreds of miles of this fiber to install across the county.
How deep will the fiber cable and conduit be in the ground?
There are several factors influencing burial depth. These include soil type (composition and stability), proximity to other utilities or objects (drain tiles, water pipes, gas lines, electrical conduits), and any local regulations or codes we’ll need to follow in certain areas. For the conduit we’ll use, we will typically bury it at a depth of 18 inches (or more based soil conditions or other factors).
Can’t you just run this under the roads?
If the roads were not constructed yet, this would be a great solution to add fiber as the road is built (asphalt, gravel, or dirt). However, because the county’s roads have been in place for decades, this option isn’t possible. While we can, when needed, use boring equipment to pass underneath roads, no technology exists that would allow us to bore under the road over the course of hundreds of miles. Additionally, even if there was, should a problem with the fiber ever occur, having fiber underneath pavement or other road material makes accessing and fixing issues that much more difficult and expensive. This is why utilities like water and sewer pipes, drainage ditches, etc. are alongside roadways. Simply put using the easements areas alongside the roads is the very best approach to making this technology available to the thousands of rural residents and businesses in Champaign County who need it.
I don’t want this internet, so why do you need an easement to my land or field?
If you don’t need internet at the location where the easement is needed, that’s okay. However, we will still need an easement to install the fiber along the identified route. A carefully planned path has been mapped out to reach all the homes, businesses, and agricultural operations in the county in the most cost-effective and reliable manner. The fiber’s path must be a continuous path – it cannot have any breaks – and can only take an overhead route in exceptional circumstances (a large river for example). In some cases, utilities may block access on one side of the road making the opposite side most useful. Also, zigzagging back and forth under roads drives project costs up immensely.
In short, you are free to pass on signing up for the fiber internet service, but the easement to lay the fiber along the designed route is still needed. There are thousands of families, businesses, and other farmers who are relying on this technology to help them with their jobs and work, healthcare, schoolwork and education, and other pursuits that fiber internet will unlock for them. They are counting on your cooperation to make this project a reality!
Are there any markers or signs to indicate the presence of buried fiber optic cable?
Yes, small but visible markers or signs will indicate the presence of buried fiber optic cable. These markers help identify the location of the cable during excavations or maintenance activities and will help you know where in the easement region the conduit and cable has been installed.
Don’t see the question you have answered here?
Don’t worry – we’re here to help! Let us know what you are wondering and we will do our best to answer---and we may even add it here for others!