Virginia Gov. Kaine embraces investment in high speed Internet

Investments in high speed Internet are as critical as those in transportation, according to Virginia Governor Timothy Kaine and a series of papers released by the Brookings Institution.

At an event highlighting the need for new proposals in public infrastructure, Kaine spoke passionately about the need to keep the United States from falling behind other industrialized nations in high speed Internet access.

"No economy improves with a declining infrastructure. Unless you make that high-tech investment easy by telecom access, you won't get [improvements in your state's economic condition]."

Kaine linked investments in high speed Internet to those in transportation, and pointed to a recently passed $300 million rural high speed package. He noted that better high speed access allows employees to telecommute, taking pressure off overloaded highways and transportation systems.

"The work we are doing in northern Virginia on broadband is helping transportation growth.... 88 percent of the industrial parks in Virginia now have the best access to high-speed telecom anywhere in the country."

That access, said Kaine, not only eases congestion but also promotes economic development and creates jobs. In addition, Kaine remarked that Virginia is one of the first states to collect data on high speed access, with leadership from a committee headed by former Virginia Governor Mark Warner.

"It is amazing that we will be one of the first states next year with precise data on what percentage of residences have telecom access right at their doorstep. Even getting that data was difficult. But we have a measurement project in place where we are getting propriety information in appropriate ways [and] can measure the percentages."

Kaine and other leaders are working to build a high speed network that is fast and efficient. Virginia's investments are leading the state in the right direction.

Telecom and Transportation Should Be Focus of Infrastructure Investments, Says Think Tank (Broadband Census)

Bringing Broadband to Unserved Communities (Brookings Institute)

Virginia struggles to find out who's connected (Speed Matters)

Former Gov. Warner leads Virginia high speed internet panel (Speed Matters)