Washington, DC lights DC-CAN, first muni 100 gigabit network

Washington, DC Mayor Vincent Gray announced that the first link of U.S. capital's new high-speed fiber-optic network, the DC Community Access Network (DC-CAN), has gone live with 100-Gbps services. DC-CAN is the first city-owned 100G network in the US.

DC-CAN also is the latest 100G customer for Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN), whose customer list gets ever longer – with major telco BT Group PLC (LSE: BT.A) being added only last week (see "BT to increase core network capacity at 21CN"). Ciena supplied 100G-enabled line cards on its 6500 packet-optical transport platform to create the DC-CAN backbone.

DC-CAN is a middle-mile network that aims to bring affordable connections to residents and businesses in underserved areas of the city. So far 24 anchor institutions such as hospitals, schools, and local government offices have active connections to the network. The network will also be open to local service providers, who can take advantage of the low-cost access to reach new customers in those underserved areas – defined as areas where broadband adoption rates are below 40%.

"With this 100G connection, we are making history by providing state-of-the-art network capacity that will serve the District’s economic growth well into the 21st century," said Mayor Gray. "DC-CAN will help pave the way for greater broadband adoption across the District of Columbia, and I’m proud that we will be the first city in the United States to make such a forward-thinking investment in crucial technology infrastructure."

The project was funded through an NTIA infrastructure grant, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The initial link, which serves communities east of the Anacostia River, is available just 6 months after breaking ground on the project. The 100G backbone links are expected to be complete in Wards 5, 7, and 8 within the next six months, and will extend to every ward in the District by June 2013.

For more information on high-speed transmission systems and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer’s Guide.