Infrastructure

The incident July 19 highlights the interconnectedness of technology systems, and the potential for catastrophic failure therein. The faulty software update resulted in worldwide outages and related problems.

The report, from the Communications Workers of America, critiques federally funded broadband work by 14 counties in the South, Northeast and Midwest on metrics including availability of project information.

Speakers at the Louisiana Rural Economic Development conference discussed the need for high-speed Internet in rural areas. Expanding fiber can stimulate local and global business, attendees said.

GreenWealth Energy and Voltpost will expand low-speed, dwell charging at multifamily housing locations and curbside, to make electric vehicles a more workable solution for renters and people with lower incomes.

The fifth round of the Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grants will dole out grant funding for career training programs in sectors such as clean energy, semiconductors and biotechnology.

The state is giving the city of Port and the town of Merrimac more than $76,000 in grants to enhance their postures. It will go toward updating incident response plans and improving their ability to respond to an attack.

In the year’s second quarter, 704 EV charging stations came online nationwide — bringing the total number of public fast-charging sites to nearly 9,000. At this rate, they will outnumber U.S. gas stations inside a decade.

The money, allocated by a budget trailer bill, will enable the California State Payroll System Project to hire a system integrator. The initiative, underway since 2016, will replace a significant piece of legacy.

Provider Comcast will deploy fiber across the city starting in the southwest, covering about one mile a day. It’s part of a broadband expansion that will include all or parts of Corcoran, Cologne, Grant, Hugo, Rogers, and Stillwater Township.

Traveling across the West in an electric car turned out to have unexpected thrills, and occasional frustrations. Our reporter found that the chargers were out there — but connecting with them sometimes meant taking the long way around.

The Maryland county shares its phone system with the city, and first identified an issue with it early Thursday. Phone service to the county and city remains out, but emergency services are not impacted.

In a forecast, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council warns data centers could use up to 4,000 megawatts on average of electricity by 2029 — enough to power the entire city of Seattle five times over — setting up potential shortfalls.

Nine Connecticut municipalities, including Danbury and New Milford, will receive conditional awards from the state Department of Transportation to build out electrical vehicle charging stations. The awards top $5 million.

The trial, meant to promote updates to the Aurigo Essentials product, could help local and regional agencies decide the best way forward for construction management tools. The move comes amid a relatively high level of public-sector infrastructure spending.

The South Side grid, partially powered by solar panels, came online in May and successfully generated enough electricity for more than 1,000 customers in Bronzeville. Next up: linking with another microgrid.

Federal approval of the state’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program smooths the way for the grant application process to open to Internet service providers, expected in late summer.

After delays in permitting, construction has started on the $50 million Vexus Fiber network. The company and city reached a franchise agreement in March 2022, and installation is expected to be fully completed during the next three years.

The funding from the Next Level Connections Broadband Grant Program is aimed at bringing Internet to more than 34,000 locations in 54 counties. Service providers and others can access it with a 20 percent match.