Deploying Rural Community Wireless Mesh Networks

The lack of adequate Internet provision in rural areas is widening the digital divide between town and country. This is proving detrimental to social communication as well as the advancement of rural businesses. Technologies including wireless mesh networking provide an excellent framework on which broadband services can be delivered into deeply rural locations where there is currently little or no infrastructure to offer such a service. This paper details the technical and social experiences encountered during the deployment of a wireless mesh networking infrastructure to the village of Wray, a rural area in the North West of England. We outline the original wireless design, describe the active technical implementation and give a performance analysis of the network in place. We also discuss the social and cultural implications of deploying this technology into the heart of the local community.

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2008
• Where: INTERNET
• Authors: Johnathan Ishmael, Sara Bury, Dimitrios P. Pezaros, Nicholas J. P. Race
• Keywords: Adequate Internet Provision, INTERNET 2008, Rural Area, Wireless Mesh