And what about cities getting smarter? Cities must consider all major trade-offs in development of a publicly financed or owned network, or directly cooperating with telecom providers to determine where best to deploy 5G networks, and define their purpose. Equity is a major consideration, too. Who benefits and how? Are there under-served or unserved areas to be included and prioritized? Is lower population density in the rural areas of the county affecting feasibility?

Traffic and safety are always high priorities, and a well-deployed, smart connected-vehicle communication system along each route, can save lives. What about overall quality of life and commerce? While telecoms already installed infrastructure beneath many major streets, there are plenty of underserved areas. Bringing 5G technology and speeds to an important commercial corridor is essential so the largest number of people can utilize the next-gen evolution.

While 5G networks boast the wow factor, roadblocks to its installation vary  from the complexities of millimeter-wave technology to so Current pole owners — legacy telecoms and rural co-ops — might not be envisioning the inevitable future needs and allowing a competitor to access their poles, hindering the widespread installation of 5G.

Look no further than what happened to Google Fiber a few years back in Nashville and several other cities. Google Fiber and the cities wanted to install its product. On the strength of a local OTMR ordinance — One-Touch Make-Ready — Google Fiber was primed to move forward by first installing its technology on poles owned by other utilities or telecom providers, while using its own contractors to make pole attachments for installing fiber and devices, while on a very compressed network-deployment timeline.