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AUTHOR(S):
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Joel M. Rinebold
- rineboldj@casternct.edu
Eastern Connecticut State University, Institute for Sustainable Energy
Willimantic, CT, USA
Julie M. Donaldson
Hurwitz & Sagarin, LLC
Milford, CT, USA
Mark F. Kohler
State of Connecticut
Hartford, CT, USA
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Customer demand for new wireless telecommunications
service, including cellular telephone, personal communications services,
specialized mobile radio, and other wireless telecommunications services,
has manifested itself in the need to construct more than 100,000 new
facilities in the United
States
alone by 2005, many of which require tower structures. While the demand
for service is a function of the market, the need for these new facilities
is a function of the technology and the competitive nature of the
industry, as guided regulators. As a consequence of this new market
and regulatory scheme for competitive services,
new telecommunications towers, originally built to provide
telecommunications services for other users, is possible in many locations,
but planners bill be forced to identify as many as six new sites per
10 km2 area (4 mile2) for the development of facilities as wireless service
expands. The challenge to identify tower sites has resulted in opportunities
to use existing towers will be developed in nearly all urban and suburban
locations. Use of existing telecommunications towers, buildings and
other tall structures, and to co-locate antennas within existing rights-of-way.
Development of facilities within existing rights-of-way is now possible
and practical by attaching antennas to existing electric transmission
line support structures. This technical application yields a unique
opportunity to provide wireless telecommunications services without
the need to construct an entirely new support structure, thus avoiding
additional costs, reducing potential public opposition for the construction
of such facilities and providing revenue to support ongoing maintenance
and management activities within the right-of-way. This paper will
explore and test new and innovative development of co-located telecommunications
facilities on existing rights-of-way, using models to assess radiofrequency
propagation and signal strength within a coverage area, analyze alternatives,
assess environmental effects, assess use of existing structures, and
examine contractual easements to provide legal rights to use the existing
rights-of-way for telecommunications service. The results of this
work is relevant to state and local planners, electric utilities,
and telecommunications carriers as a method to assist in the guidance
and planning of telecommunications services and the efficient use
of existing rights-of-way.
Keywords: Electric transmission, wireless, siting, legal, regulation,
telecommunications, co-location of telecommunications facilities
Ref#: 3-5
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