Map of current US internet speeds by state. Of course, NM is a very large state, and taking an average of internet speeds will be somewhat of a deceptive undertaking if one wants to know the speed in any particular part of the state.
Apparently the above map came from this Akamai site which has more extensive reports available for download, and for use as iOS app. See accompanying post for infographics.
No doubt ABQ Bernalillo Santa Fe Los Alamos areas have the highest speeds, then there’s the rest of the state to consider, and because most is very rural and very spread out, thus much slower. DAC is a good example of that because the access speeds in CLC are much higher than much of the county outside the city.
There is some momentum behind initiatives to address the slow access, and limited or no access conditions in many parts of DAC, but it’s likely to improve in stages through pilot projects until a technology comes along that can practically and affordably address spread out populations with limited financial resources.
Increasing access could also proceed through state and federal government initiatives, should those come to pass. As we know, access to POTS, was enable by government initiatives that collected a tax on everyone’s phone bill, which was then distributed to subsidize rural phone access. Something similar has been proposed and rollout soon underway by FCC to address internet access, but only on a limited scale.
Then there’s the long odds hope that Google, or Facebook, or Apple or another tech giant will support and/or bring access to rural areas. As we know, Google has been doing that for some urban areas in the US already, and has been ramping up that program. But it’s a very large country.