Verizon Wireless Invests $120 Million In Alabama

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Alabamians can now make wireless calls, send text messages and surf the Web more than ever before – and at faster speeds – in the state, thanks to Verizon Wireless and the significant investments the company made in 2011. Over the course of the year, new cell towers and/or other network capacity enhancements worth more than $120 million were activated in over 320 cities and towns across Alabama, including 22 new cell sites in 18 cities. Residents throughout the Birmingham, Huntsville, Mobile and Montgomery metro areas now have access to the company’s 4G LTE network for super-fast connectivity. In these areas, customers with 4G LTE devices can now take advantage of the nation’s fastest 4G network with speeds up to 10 times faster than Verizon Wireless’ 3G network.

In addition to rolling out 4G LTE technology across the state, the company’s 2011 network investment also included expanded network coverage and additional capacity enhancements to stay ahead of growing demand on its voice and data networks.

Today, over 95 percent of the state’s population is covered by Verizon Wireless’ 3G network and over 50 percent of Alabamians are covered by its 4G LTE network, ensuring customers have the capacity needed for their growing data needs and the coverage to stay connected wherever they go statewide. The company’s ongoing network investment in Alabama now totals over $830 million since the company was formed in 2000.

“The team here in Alabama has worked extremely hard over this past year to ensure that Alabamians have the best wireless options available to them across the state and can connect wherever and whenever they need. As the use of smartphones, tablets and other wireless devices continue to grow and the speed and connectivity provided by our 4G LTE network revolutionizes the way we communicate, we are well prepared for network capacity growth needs in 2012 and beyond. We want our customers to know that they can rely on the Verizon Wireless network,” said Jonathan LeCompte, president – Georgia/Alabama Region, Verizon Wireless.

The company also reacted quickly to deploy Cells on Wheels (COWs) in Tuscaloosa and Pleasant Grove to boost coverage in two of the hardest hit areas following the April 27, 2011 tornadoes that impacted much of the state. COWs are fully functional, generator-powered mobile cell sites that provide access to the company’s voice and wireless broadband networks. Additionally, temporary towers operated in Cullman, Centreville, Jasper and east of Lake Martin to replace towers badly damaged in the storms, and the company added capacity on existing towers in Bessemer, Birmingham, Decatur, Guntersville, Hueytown and Midfield to accommodate increased traffic across the network.

Other 2011 Verizon Wireless Network Highlights

• Over 6.5 billion voice and data transmissions and more than 23 billion minutes of airtime were logged on the Verizon Wireless network in Alabama during 2011. Wireless data traffic increased over 161% and Text Messaging Service increased over 27% from the previous year.
• Verizon Wireless’ network technicians traveled almost 15,000 miles across the state in 2011 in special test vehicles equipped with phones, wireless data devices and computers to measure the quality of voice and data calls on the Verizon Wireless network, as well as other carriers’ wireless networks.

EDITOR’S NOTE: For a network technician ride-along or to tour a Verizon Wireless network facility, please contact Kate Jay at 678-339-4828.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves nearly 108 million total wireless connections, including 92.2 million retail customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with nearly 82,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.  

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