LA GRANDE — La Grande residents will have more opportunity to get on the fastest lane of the information superhighway.

Ziply Fiber, a telecommunications company, earlier this month purchased the Pacific Northwest portion of Frontier Communications. One of Ziply Fiber’s first projects involves the installation of fiber optic cable in 13 cities, including La Grande. Installation work is beginning, and in 45 days some portions of La Grande will have fiber optic cable, according to Dan Miller, a Ziply Fiber spokesperson.

He said La Grande’s fiber optic installation will be finished by the end of the year.

“Most portions of La Grande will then have access to fiber optic service,” Miller said.

Ziply will be installing the fiber optic cable with major assistance from Wholesail Networks, a Northwest-based, privately held telecommunications and internet infrastructure company. Ziply Fiber earlier acquired Wholesail Networks and has been working with it on internet projects for the past six months.

The fiber optic cable will provide lightning-fast internet service, Miller said. He said it is generally at least 10 times faster than the DSL internet service Ziply Fiber customers in La Grande now receive. The fiber optic cable also can provide phone and television streaming services.

Fiber optic systems use small, flexible strands of glass encased in a protective sleeve, known as a fiber cable, to connect to the internet.

Eastern Oregon Net Inc. in La Grande already provides fiber optic options. About five years ago, businesses on Adams Avenue began receiving fiber optic from EONI, and businesses on Washington and Jefferson avenues started getting it about a year ago. The company in July 2019 offered fiber optic cable to businesses on Cove Avenue from Cherry Street to Interstate 84, said EONI owner Jeff Crews.

EONI installed fiber optic internet for households from Alder Street to Fourth Street and from Palmer Avenue to Adams Avenue in late 2019. Eastern Oregon Net will continue installing fiber optic cable in more residential areas in the future, Crews said. He added the company now is installing fiber optic cable in Elgin.

Ziply Fiber, in addition to its fiber optic upgrades, will continue providing the services its customers previously received from Frontier Communications, including DSL internet and copper landline telephone services.

Miller said many people want to keep their landlines in today’s digital age because these phones often continue operating during power outages.

Ziply Fiber purchased Frontier Communication’s Northwest region for $1.35 billion, according to Miller. The closing of the sale means that the 500,000 residential and business internet, phone and television subscribers that Frontier Communications had served are now Ziply Fiber subscribers. Miller said the former Frontier Communications subscribers were notified multiple times of the changeover.

Ziply is investing $500 million on upgrading the internet services to its customers in the four-state Northwest region. Much of this is going to projects in La Grande and the other 12 cities: Coquille, Coos Bay, and North Bend; the Idaho cities of Coeur d’Alene, Kellogg and Moscow; the Washington cities of Anacortes, Kennewick, Pullman, Richland and Snohomish; and the Montana city of Libby.

Ziply Fiber will be making upgrades in hundreds of other cities throughout the Pacific Northwest. Miller said La Grande was one of the first cities for upgrades because it is a place where installations could be made in short order. In La Grande, he said, much of the cable Ziply will need access to is not below ground, which means less digging.

“We wanted to start in areas where we can make a difference quickly,” Miller said.