The remainder of the Wood exchange where all necessary rights of way have been secured is scheduled for Fiber upgrades in 2024.

Contractors:
Wiring Contractor – Travis Electric
Engineering Consultant – RVW, Inc.
Construction Contractor – North Central Service

Overview Video   Cutover Video

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PROJECT UPDATE

May 2, 2024

• North Central Service has plowed all mainline cable and customer lines in town.
• This week, crews should be done pulling cable through the duct plowed to customer premises in town.
• The rural drop crew expects to be done plowing lines to customer homes this week.
• Wet weather has halted mainline plowing in the rural part of the project.
• Travis Electric is nearly finished installing clamshells on customer premises. If you are in the project area and have not yet had a clamshell installed, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

April 25, 2024

• North Central Service has finished installing duct in town.
• Crews are nearly finished with plowing lines to customer homes in the rural part of the project.
• A mainline crew has started on rural plowing. They are continuing along Highway 44 west of Wood.
• Travis Electric is trying to reach the remaining customers who do not have a clamshell on their home. If you are in the project area and have not yet had a clamshell installed, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

April 19, 2024

• North Central Service has a crew installing duct in town. Technicians will be pulling fiber cables through the orange duct starting next week.
• A mainline crew has started on rural plowing. They are working along Highway 44 west of Wood.
• Travis Electric is trying to reach the remaining customers who do not have a clamshell on their home. If you are in the project area and have not yet had a clamshell installed, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

April 11, 2024

• North Central Service has a bore crew working on the rural part of the project.
• A crew will be plowing in town starting next Monday.
• On Tuesday, a second crew will begin construction in the rural area north of Wood.
• The crew burying lines to customer homes will finish the remaining drops in Wood and move to the rural area north of town.
• Travis Electric is trying to reach the remaining customers who do not have a clamshell on their home. If you are in the project area and have not yet had a clamshell installed, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

April 4, 2024

• North Central Service has a bore crew working on the rural part of the project.
• Next week a crew will start boring, or drilling and inserting vacant pipe, to customer premises in town.
• If you have any questions about the project, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

March 28, 2024

• Next week, North Central Service will have a boring crew working in town.
• Travis Electric technicians are installing clamshells on customer premises.
• If you have any questions about the project, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

March 22, 2024

• Travis Electric has started hanging clamshells on customer homes in Wood.
• If you have any questions about the project, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

March 15, 2024

• Travis Electric has started hanging clamshells on customer homes in Wood.
• If you have any questions about the project, please call Golden West at 1-855-888-7777 and ask for the engineering department.

February 5, 2024 

Golden West will bring fiber optic technology
to more Wood/Witten rural areas 

Golden West will continue to expand its fiber network to areas around Wood and Witten this year. Fiber optic technology allows for greater bandwidth and speeds, offering a more reliable and secure connection to the world for all telecommunications services including internet and phone. 

The Fiber to the Home (FTTH) project will convert subscribers there from copper cable to long, thin strands of glass called optical fibers, like a strand of hair. These fibers use pulses of light to transmit data and are immune to environmental factors such as electrical currents and water. The multi-year process of upgrading all Golden West customers involves burying about 14,000 miles of fiber-optic cable. 

“Fiber optic technology helps brighten the future of the communities and customers we serve,” says General Manager and CEO Denny Law. “Broadband allows telemedicine to reach every corner, plugs rural classrooms and students into the world, and handles the needs of farm fields pulsing with data.” 

This latest project will connect the remainder of the Wood and Witten exchanges – where all the necessary rights of way have been secured – to the fiber optic network. Every subscriber who will be upgraded will receive a personal letter in the mail from Golden West soon. Potential new subscribers in these areas should contact Golden West.

Golden West will host an informational open house for subscribers who are part of this year’s construction project. It will be held at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 22, at the Community Hall at 130 S. Dakota St. in Wood. Those in attendance can learn more about the project from Golden West representatives and talk with contractors who will assist with the local project. Attendees can also enjoy refreshments and register for door prizes. 

Four contractors will complete the work in the rural areas of Wood and Witten on behalf of Golden West. North Central Service (NCS) will handle construction around Wood, while Cable Communications Services will construct around Witten. RVW Inc. will cover easements, permits, and inspections in both areas, and Travis Electric will serve as the wiring contractor for both exchanges. Golden West will take care of customer service. 

FTTH is a multi-stage project that can take up to a year depending on factors such as weather. Current customers will be transitioned to the new fiber optic technology after construction is complete late in 2024 or early in 2025. At that time, customers will be able to subscribe to Golden West’s faster internet speeds. 

Currently more than three-quarters of the Golden West service territory is served by fiber. The cooperative is committed to upgrading its entire service territory to fiber within the next three to four years. In addition to Wood and Witten, Golden West will also complete fiber optic upgrade projects this year for subscribers in rural Custer and rural Hot Springs.  

Visit goldenwest.com/FTTH for an overview of the project now and throughout the year. For those who are unable to attend the open house or for things that may come up afterwards, the page also offers the option to submit questions and to fill out a form for a chance to win valuable prizes. Please contact Golden West with any additional questions, concerns, or comments by calling 1-855-888-7777, option 3, and ask for the Engineering Department.