Drones Will Be Deployed To Help Broadband Project

STF photo

Jamestown, CA — Tuolumne County government officials report there will be some drones hovering over Jamestown and Columbia starting this Wednesday, May 1, and continuing through Wednesday, May 8.

They will be used to help design a future broadband internet infrastructure installation project. The drone survey work is funded by a Local Area Technology Assistance grant.

Tuolumne County IT Project Manager Len De Groot says it will produce detailed designs that can be used by any internet service provider to install broadband infrastructure, reducing costs and the time needed to break ground.

The company hired to do the work, Airworks, out of Boston, Massachusetts, reports, “You can expect to see drones conducting operations in the community at about 200-feet to 300-feet high as well as some ground crews conducting safety checks and taking measurements on the ground. Work will be conducted between the hours of 7 AM to 5 PM. Minimal sound disruptions should occur.”

The company continues, “The data captured by this operation only includes utility structures (poles and wires), roads, sidewalks, and curbs and is only used for mapping purposes. Data collection through the use of drones and aircraft greatly increases the speed at which the County can complete community improvement initiatives such as this broadband installation/expansion project.”

The scope of the aerial work covers most all of Jamestown and Columbia.