A Consolidated Communications worker fixes a line along Route 228 in Adams Twp.

A new fiber broadband program from Consolidated Communications, Fidium Fiber, is now offering a 2-gig speed option across the range of its network, including portions of southwestern Butler County.

Consolidated Communications began the Fidium program in November 2021 as a specifically residential internet provider. The program became active in Pennsylvania in April 2022, and is available in Cranberry Township, Mars, Sarver, Saxonburg, Seven Fields, and Valencia.

“Fidium is the future of Consolidated’s consumer fiber internet service, and we’re proud to offer it at a competitive price point to our customers in Pennsylvania,” said Erik Garr, president of consumer and small business for Consolidated Communications in an April news release. “Fidium’s re-imagined customer experience includes more choices, control and personalization, but most importantly, Fidium delivers the ultra-fast speeds that customers need to work and learn from home.”

The new upgraded option, as of June 27, offers a faster internet speed package option for customers. The 2-gig package is $165 per month, with a number of descending speed options ranging from 50 MBps to two gigs.

"The average homes in Cranberry are averaging about 150 megabytes per second, and that’s just on the average,” said Keith Schedlbauer, senior director of field and network operations. “Two gig is 2,000 megabytes. It's over the top as far as being able to provide multiple connectivity points for a home, to make sure that everybody has everything in their house that they need to consume data.”

Fiber internet, he said, is easier to upgrade over time and can offer faster speeds.

While Fidium serves municipalities in the southern part of Butler County, Schedlbauer said, there are plans to expand to other parts of Western Pennsylvania.