Move Expands to 1 Gigabit Network, Saves Up to $200,000
The City of Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO), Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA), JEA and the Jacksonville Aviation Authority (JAA) are consolidating their internet service in a move that will produce up to $200,000 in combined savings annually. Mayor Alvin Brown announced the cost-savings move in a news conference on Monday.
“This is a great opportunity for all the partner agencies to work together to provide superior service and save money at a time we need to make every dollar count,” said Mayor Brown. “With a growing number of websites and applications helping to expand the reach of city government, we owe it to taxpayers to invest wisely in the most effective and efficient systems to keep everyone connected.”
The consolidation, led by city’s Information Technologies Division, delivers improved internet service to the city and partner agencies, while cutting combined costs by up to $200,000 annually once all the partner agencies are implemented. The new service, provided by Florida LambdaRail, more than doubles the city’s network capacity, switching from a 355 megabit network to 1 gigabit of service. This expansion will improve network capacity at various city facilities, including many libraries, allowing for faster browsing and increased efficiencies for citizens and government employees.
“The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is pleased to be part of a project that is projected to save more than $200,000 a year for the city and partnering agencies. This effort will provide the Sheriff’s Office the potential for increased bandwidth in the future. This technology initiative will support both our Intelligence-Led Policing programming and public communication efforts,” said Sheriff John Rutherford.
"The opportunity to save taxpayer money and move to the next generation Internet service that more than doubles the city's network capacity will ensure we keep up with the ever growing citizen demands for increased online content at enhanced speeds," said Councilman Jim Love, Chairman of the Transportation, Energy, and Utilities (TEU) Committee. "Sharing the LambdaRail Internet service with other city agencies is exactly the kind of savings that consolidated government can bring to its citizens."
“We support this service and believe it is a great opportunity for consolidated governmental agencies to take advantage of the lower-cost high speed internet offered by LambdaRail,” said JEA CEO and Managing Director Paul McElroy. “We look at this as an opportunity to increase reliability and lower costs, thus increasing the value we provide our customers.”
Florida LambdaRail LLC is a Florida limited liability company formed by member higher education institutions to facilitate the advancement of research, education and 21st century economy initiatives in the State of Florida, utilizing next generation network technologies, protocols and services.
“Florida LambdaRail, and our support team, is excited about the addition of the City of Jacksonville as an affiliate,” said Joseph Lazor, executive director of Florida LambdaRail. “We look forward to a long and productive partnership in serving the city.”
The improved service is now live in government facilities across Jacksonville. The city is currently working to roll-out service to all partner agencies. To learn more about Florida LambdaRail, visit
www.flrnet.org.
See more pictures from the news conference