By Jonathan Wardle
In August, Switchpoint, a network technology company, stopped providing Internet service to American Fork and Springville.
More than six months later, the high-speed cables left by the company are still lying around unused.
Switchpoint first started providing high-speed Internet capabilities to Springville in 1997 in hopes of testing its network technology. Switchpoint later set up a similar network in American Fork to test newer developments.
Lynne Yocom, director of information technology for the city of American Fork, said Switchpoint was able to provide the entire city with Internet access at 100 Megabits per second.
But last August, Switchpoint suddenly decided to stop providing general access to the Internet in Springville and American Fork.
'When Switchpoint suspended service last August, all the wiring was left in the field,' said Jenny Markway, a public relations representative for Switchpoint.
Although Switchpoint stopped providing service for residences in American Fork, they did agree to keep providing service for the city offices.
'It took us by surprise,' said Yocom, who works for American Fork City. 'I was just glad that we didn''t lose ours.'
Yocom said she enjoys having such fast Internet at her office.
'It''s a really nice connection,' she said. 'I''ve got really fast Internet - I can stream video on my desktop.'
Yocom said the residents got used to the high-speed connectivity and they really want it back, but no one can use the lines because they belong to Switchpoint.
'Right now there needs to be some repairs to it,' Yocom said. 'It''s not fully functional to every house. To turn it back on to residential, it would need some money.'
Yocom said American Fork has expressed interest in buying the lines from Switchpoint.
'We don''t care if it''s a different ISP that comes in and talks to Switchpoint, or if it''s us,' Yocom said. 'We just want to get something back.'
At the same time that Switchpoint cut service to American Fork, they also cut service to Springville, although they still support 1,000 Springville homes as testing grounds for further product development.
Concerning the lines that were put in by Switchpoint, Layne Long, city administrator for Springville, said 'They''re good fiber lines. They are just sitting vacant right now.'
Long expressed interest in contracting or buying the rights to use the lines left by Switchpoint.
'We don''t want to tear up the lines,' he said. 'We''re looking for options that make economic sense.'
Representatives from Switchpoint are unwilling to offer information on the future status of the cables they left behind.
'At this point in time we''re not prepared to make any comment regarding the networks,' said Curt Allman, who works in business development for Switchpoint.