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AT&T Invests Nearly $150 Million Over 3-Year Period to Boost Local Networks in Pittsburgh Area

AT&T invested nearly $150 Million in Pittsburgh area wireless and wired networks during 2016-2018. These investments boost reliability, coverage, speed and overall performance for residents and businesses. AT&T also improved critical services that support Public Safety and first responders using the FirstNet communications platform. AT&T’s wireless network covers more than 99% of all Americans and has become the fastest wireless network in the nation, according to the second quarter 2019 results from tests taken with Speedtest® and analyzed by Ookla®. In 2018, AT&T made 171 wireless network upgrades in the Pittsburgh area, including adding new cell sites, boosting network capacity and new wireless high-speed internet connections. “We're always looking for new opportunities to enhance coverage for our customers and FirstNet subscribers,” said David Kerr, president, AT&T Pennsylvania.  “This investment in the Pittsburgh area is another example of how AT&T is working to help keep customers connected when and where they need it most. And, our investments support community and economic development in the region.” The AT&T LTE network covers more than 400 million people in North America. By building out our 4G LTE network, it is boosting network speeds and capacity, as it continues to expand the availability of its network and upgrades its technology. Additionally, for the 5th consecutive year AT&T has landed on Fortune magazine's list of the "World's Most Admired" companies. It's also the 6th year in a row AT&T has appeared on the Global Top 50 list – no other telecom company made the Top 50.

Transforming Public Safety Communications

FirstNet is Public Safety's dedicated, nationwide communications platform. It is for all first responders – career and volunteer, urban, or rural. It’s bringing public safety communications into the 21st century with new, innovative capabilities, helping first responders connect to the critical information they need – every day and in every emergency. Building upon our current and planned investments in Pittsburgh, AT&T continues to extend the reach and increase the capacity of the FirstNet communications platform:
  • Deployed Band 14 spectrum in more than 600 markets nationwide, including Pittsburgh. Band 14 is high-quality spectrum provided by the First Responder Network Authority. Its signal covers larger geographic areas with less infrastructure to better support rural communities, and it can better reach in-building in more urban areas as compared to higher-MHz spectrum.
  • Pittsburgh first responders enjoy the fastest overall experience on FirstNet, compared to any commercial network in the nation, thanks to the specialized capabilities enabled by the physically separate and dedicated FirstNet network core, like always-on priority and preemption. 3
  • Public safety agencies subscribed to FirstNet have 24/7 access to a nationwide fleet of 75 deployable network assets. These assets can either be deployed for planned events or called upon in emergencies to help first responders stay connected and operate faster, safer and more effectively when lives are on the line.
FirstNet is built with AT&T in a public-private partnership with the First Responder Network Authority – an independent agency within the federal government. This helps ensure that the FirstNet communications platform and service offerings meet the short- and long-term needs of the public safety community. To learn more about our wireless coverage in Pittsburgh or anywhere in the U.S., go to the AT&T Coverage Viewer. For updates on the AT&T wireless network, please go to the AT&T network news page.