Wellington County Library's Wi-Fi hotspot lending program a 'life saver,' says patron
The Wellington County Library is helping bridge the gap that telecom companies won't: providing patrons in rural areas with access to high-speed internet.
Although there's been talk of service providers bringing high-speed to the Wellington area, the reality is many still rely on dial-up, explained chief librarian, Murray McCabe.
"When you're in an urban setting there's likely either a hotel, a coffee shop, or some other institution providing Wi-Fi access," said McCabe. "If you're out in a rural area, there is not that possibility."
The pilot program is the first in Canada to loan internet hotspots to people in rural communities. Other libraries have launched similar programs in the past year, but have been for patrons in urban centres.
Program is a 'lifesaver'
McCabe said more than 35 per cent of patrons who have used the hotspots are not able to access the internet anywhere other than the library.
The library has a total of 70 hotspots patrons can borrow and each hotspot can be connected to up to 15 devices at once.
"It has saved my life," said library patron, Paula Decoit, who cannot access high speed from her home in Rockwood Ontario.
Hoping to continue pilot
The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport has funded the pilot program until February 2018. But McCabe said the library plans to find a way to continue the program after that.
"People really like it and its helped out a lot of people, so we'll still offer the program somehow," he said.
The library also plans to share everything they learn from the pilot program with other libraries across the province, in the hopes that other libraries will soon be able to offer something similar.