With just under 417,000 inhabitants, the Main-Kinzig district is the most populous and, with a total area of almost 1.4 million km², the largest district in Hesse in terms of area. It stretches from the foothills of the Rhön in the east to the Frankfurt city region in the southwest. These geographical conditions posed a number of challenges for broadband expansion, but these were overcome with the help of the federal funding program for broadband expansion.
The fact that the district is now considered a showcase project for the expansion of digital infrastructure is also thanks to the combined efforts and initiative of mayors, city councillors, regional and municipal representatives, the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the district trades associations. Breitband Main-Kinzig GmbH is an expression of this exemplary cooperation. It was founded specifically for the broadband expansion in the district, which is being implemented using an operator model.
In spring 2017, the Main-Kinzig district was granted a total of around 2.4 million euros from the federal funding program for broadband expansion. This corresponds to funding of 50 percent of the total investment. The funds were invested in the development of FTTB and FTTC expansion measures. Several hundred kilometers of fiber optics were laid to provide all 29 towns and municipalities, including their 160 districts, with a high-performance data line.
The project paid particular attention to connecting public facilities. For example, 15 schools, ten administrative buildings and three care facilities were connected, which now have access to bandwidths of 50 Mbit/s and higher thanks to the federal broadband funding program. Both the urban areas on the outskirts of Frankfurt and industrial estates in less densely populated areas now have a real competitive advantage thanks to the expansion. This also improves the attractiveness and demand situation in the regions supported by the federal broadband funding program.
The Main-Kinzig district is a prime example of how nationwide coverage with high-speed Internet can have a positive impact on the development of an entire region.
Photo above: A cable reel at a construction site.
Photo below: Expansion project in the Main-Kinzig district as part of the federal funding program for broadband expansion.
Photo credit above: aconium GmbH.
Photo credit below: Breitband Main-Kinzig GmbH.