iRis Networks, a middle mile provider that serves 250 rural communities in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama, is going to build three new key fiber routes totaling 897 new miles.
Set to go under construction later this year, the new routes will include paths between Johnson City-Knoxville-Chattanooga, Memphis-Nashville-Chattanooga and Knoxville-Nashville-Clarksville.
Driven by growth in Tennessee and surrounding areas, the 12 independent telcos that developed iRis Networks are focused on servicing underserved rural markets and providing a digital highway to metropolitan areas in and around Tennessee.
Business and wholesale customers that reside along this route will be able to access iRis' suite of carrier Ethernet, dark fiber and Internet access services.
While iRis has established partnerships with anchor tenants, the company said it is open to working with additional partners.
These new proposed routes are just one of several moves the service provider has made in recent years to enhance its network while making the communities it operates in more attractive for businesses to locate their facilities.
Besides building out its own facilities, iRis has been an advocate of expanding its reach through partnerships with other rural providers such as NGN Interconnect and Ritter Communications.
In September 2015, iRis Networks established a new fiber Ethernet interconnection agreement with NGN Interconnect to enhance the reach of their networks while broadening broadband availability between Nashville, Knoxville and Cleveland, Tn., and Atlanta and North Georgia.