The Government of Yukon says a fibre-optic line running from Inuvik, NWT to Dawson City is now complete, offering internet and phone redundancy to parts of both territories.
Inuvik’s main fibre line is the Mackenzie Valley Fibre Link, which runs via Fort Simpson to the south of Canada and beyond.
Once the 778-km Dempster Fibre Line to Dawson City becomes operational in the coming months, it’ll offer a backup that means if one line goes down, the other can pick up the load.
Previously, a fibre outage usually meant internet and phone service grinding to a near-total halt in communities like Inuvik, where only a limited satellite or microwave service might have been available as an alternative.
Increasingly, low-Earth orbit services like Starlink are also being used by residents of those areas.
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The Yukon said the Dempster Fibre Line creates a “redundancy loop” that will “help ensure internet and cellular services remain operational in the event of a disruption.”
Northwestel will operate the new line.
“Over the coming months, Northwestel will continue to perform commissioning work before officially connecting the line to the network and bringing it into operation,” a Government of Yukon news release stated.
“The line is expected to come into service in December 2024.”
The federal government contributed $59 million to the line’s construction. Northwestel paid $15 million. Yukon has previously said it was contributing $5 million.
