Ziply Fiber’s 400G Northern link route appeals to low-latency hungry customers

Ziply Fiber's “Northern Link Route” is now ready for service to attract enterprise customers that require long-haul, low-latency optical services between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest.

Offering 39.5ms round-trip latency with 400 Gbps, low-latency, high-capacity long-haul transport, the Northern Link route connects Hillsboro, Portland, Seattle, Spokane, Missoula, Billings, Bismarck, Fargo, Minneapolis, Madison, and Chicago, and dozens of other major cities in between.

Initially launched with limited operations along the Western portion of the route’s path in October 2024, it is now fully operational. It is ready for service along the entire 2,100-mile route, including full connectivity to and from Chicago.

An array of financial institutions, data center operators, hyperscalers, and others that need ultra-low latency, combined with the shortest path from the Midwest to the Pacific Northwest, is attracting them to the new route.

Chris Gellos, commercial general manager for Ziply Fiber, said the completion of the route ties in with the service provider’s broader network expansion ambitions.

“It wasn't very long ago that that was just within our four-state footprint,” he said. “We aspire to provide a nationwide network. We're well on our way to doing that. So, this Northern Link route is really the first of the routes that we've gone across the US.”

He added that the building of this network route is a response to customer demand. “When you look at, you know, Chicago with traders, you know, any folks that are requiring low latency, high-speed transport that scales, that's where we've had the most reception,” Gellos said.

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