New broadband mapping tool announced in Illinois

Gov. J.B Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) have announced a new project for interactive broadband mapping and speed test tools that is intended to help expand access to high-speed internet in communities across Illinois. The project entails the creation of the interactive Connect Illinois Broadband Map and the Illinois Broadband Lab. DCEO has partnered with stakeholders including the University of Illinois System, Illinois Innovation Network, and the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society for this project.

The interactive map and the Illinois Broadband Lab provide community stakeholders and other stakeholders in Illinois with important mapping and speed test tools, including hundreds of PDF maps along with datasets on socioeconomic and jurisdiction boundary metrics. Users can input their address to access information on service and technology availability. These tools and information can be useful for drafting grant applications for government funding and for developing plans to improve local technology infrastructure. Additionally, unlike other maps before it, the new mapping tool will provide more timely, granular, and accurate data on broadband service, with an ongoing ability for residents to run speed tests that will continue to fuel the accuracy of the maps over time.

The new effort builds on Pritzker’s $420 million Connect Illinois broadband infrastructure plan launched in 2019, which aims to develop the technological infrastructure of Illinois to reach parity with 21st century standards.

More information on the interactive Connect Illinois Broadband Map and the Illinois Broadband Lab can be accessed here.