August Solar Eclipse Could Disrupt Roads and Cellular Networks

GeoGreg writes: On August 21, 2017, the contiguous United States will experience its first total solar eclipse since 1979. According to GreatAmericanEclipse.com's Michael Zeiler, approximately 200 million people live within one day's drive of the eclipse. Zeiler projects that between 1.85 to 7.4 million people will attempt to visit the path of totality. As the eclipse approaches, articles are appearing predicting the possibility of automobile traffic jamming rural roads. There is also concern about the ability of rural cellular networks to handle such a large influx. AT&T is bringing in Cell On Wheel (COW) systems to rural locations in Kentucky, Idaho, and Oregon, while Verizon is building a temporary tower in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The disruption could be frustrating to those trying to get to the eclipse or share their photos via social networking. If cellular networks can't handle the data, apps like Waze won't be much help in avoiding the traffic. If communication is essential near the eclipse path, Astronomy Magazine recommends renting a satellite phone.

Comments

Re: So what

[Anonymous Coward]

This is why net neutrality is bad. Cellular networks should be able to give a lower priority to people traveling to view the solar eclipse. Using QoS would ensure that the influx of traffic wouldn't prevent essential services from being cut off. However, cellular providers don't have the ability to do this because of net neutrality. This is precisely why net neutrality needs to be abolished.