Sixteen cities of New Jersey have asked the state to investigate Verizon as it feels the telecom company has, through neglect, abandoned and retired its copper landline infrastructure in most of South Jersey.
In some regions where Verizon has not been able to upgrade to its fiber network, it has failed to maintain its copper wires that are used to provide telephone service and DSL internet. “In more affluent communities, Verizon has begun to phase out copper with more modern fiber” while “ignoring these issues in communities like ours,” Hopewell Township Committeeman Gregory Facemyer said in the towns’ announcement of their petition.
On the contrary, Verizon denies most of the allegations explaining that it is committed to maintaining a reliable service in rural and urban parts of the state. Verizon confirms that it continues to invest and enhance its network because of the fierce competition for communication services throughout the country.
Earlier, Verizon’s predecessor New Jersey Bell committed to a statewide broadband buildout in a 1993 agreement with the other state authorities in exchange for a price regulation overhaul requested by the telco. While most of the towns are still stuck with the aging copper networks, Last year Verizon had an agreement with the state to meet its obligations with the cellular network instead of wired broadband.
Thereafter, the town’s petition has asked the BPU to investigate and rectify Verizon’s lack of maintenance of copper landline services and facilities. Verizon is also asked to maintain its infrastructure until it completely builds its statewide fiber network. Cellular services are not the sole substitute for landline or fiber services. The town stated, “The failure of Verizon to comply with its obligations… to provide fiber optic service throughout the State of New Jersey,” combined with poor maintenance of copper landlines, “will effectively cripple the capability of customers in rural areas to maintain adequate telephone, data, and Internet service.”
The town claimed that home phone service, internet service, and 911 access have been interrupted most of the times due to bad weather, including fog and drizzle. “Literally hundreds of such complaints have been received in the Petitioners’ communities,” the petition said. The petition further claims that “Verizon has manipulated its customer complaint records” to make the problems appear less severe than they are in reality.
Verizon has elucidated that fiber is the most reliable platform to meet present customer needs. Further, the New Jersey towns said, “Yet for our struggling communities, Verizon refuses to even acknowledge there is a problem, much less offer to upgrade our copper to fiber. Rather than discuss these problems with us, Verizon’s representative has decried our concerns, comparing local government leaders to a modern day flat earth society.”