Use Broadband Outreach

The Broadband Outreach solution delivers a set of capabilities that help you inventory broadband investments and resources, understand broadband coverage in your community, and promote actions being taken to address the digital divide.

In this topic, you’ll learn how to use the solution by assuming the role of a user and performing the workflows below.

Promote broadband and digital equity programs

The Broadband Outreach ArcGIS Hub site can be used to promote broadband investments and digital equity programs in your community.

In this section, you'll assume the role of a member of the public and explore broadband and digital equity programs in your community.

Submit a broadband access and speed survey

The Broadband Speed Test survey can be used to help broadband staff to find gaps in high-speed internet service and identify areas of need.

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Outreach ArcGIS Hub site.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. Navigate to the Current Broadband Coverage section and click the Launch Survey button.
4. Ensure you are connected to your home WiFi network and turn off cellular service if you are using a mobile device.
5. Enter your address in the search box and select the corresponding location from the drop-down.
6. Answer corresponding survey questions and click Submit.

Examine broadband speed test survey results

The Broadband Survey Results app can be used to examine broadband speed test results.

1. Verify that you are signed in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Outreach ArcGIS Hub site.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. Scroll to the Broadband Survey Results section.
4. Explore the embedded app to view broadband speed test results.

Locate a public WiFi hotspot

The Public WiFi Locator can be used to find WiFi hotspots that are available for use.

1. Verify that you are signed in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Outreach ArcGIS Hub site.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. Navigate to the WiFi Hotspots section and click the Launch App button.
4. Enter your address in the search box or click Search this area in the map window.
5. Explore public WiFi locations and details.

Review broadband investments

The Broadband Investments app can be used to find information about broadband projects in their community.

1. Verify that you are signed in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Outreach ArcGIS Hub site.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. Navigate to the Active Broadband Investments section and click the Launch App button.
4. In the left panel, choose Planned Start Date filters to further explore and refine broadband project results.
5. Click a project from the Projects list to see where the project is located, and to show the project detail.
6. Pan and zoom around the map to refine the list of projects and project details.

Inventory investments and WiFi hotspots

The Broadband Infrastructure Inventory app can be used by program analysts to create, edit, and review investments and WiFi hotspots. New broadband features can be added as new WiFi locations or broadband projects go online.

You'll now assume the role of a program analyst. In this workflow, you are asked to review and add new broadband investments and WiFi hotspots.

Edit broadband infrastructure

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Infrastructure Inventory app.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. Select a broadband project on the map.
4. Review the attribute information and enter the remaining details for the broadband project.
5. When you're finished, click Update.

Add a new WiFi location

1. Verify that you are signed in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Infrastructure Inventory app.
2. Open the item page and click View.
3. In the Editor widget, click New Feature under WiFi Locations.
4. Add a new WiFi location to the map.
5. Enter details for the WiFi location, scroll to the bottom of the form, and click Create.
6. Repeat steps 1-3 for each WiFi location.

Monitor broadband coverage

The Broadband Coverage Dashboard can be used by the director to understand broadband speed test survey results and identify coverage gaps in the community.

You'll now assume the role of director. In this workflow, you will explore how broadband coverage is distributed across the community and analyze survey results to understand patterns in access or speed.

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Broadband Coverage Dashboard app.
2. Open the item page and click View Dashboard.
3. Click the graphs to explore the surveys submitted.
4. Review indicators to see the range and average download speed, upload speed and ping results.
5. Click the Average Download Speed by ISP graph to see how results vary by provider.
6. Examine trends in survey responses by survey date, location type, ethnicity and race using filters in the left panel.
7. Click a survey in the map to see additional details.

Analyze broadband equity

The Social Equity Analysis solution delivers a set of capabilities that can help you understand broadband coverage, analyze community characteristics, and generate a broadband equity index that can be used to educate internal and external stakeholders.

In this section, you'll assume the role of a broadband program analyst and use the Social Equity Analysis solution to analyze broadband equity.

Deploy the Social Equity Analysis solution

To perform a broadband equity analysis, complete the following steps:

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization in the ArcGIS Solutions app.
2. Navigate to the Social Equity Analysis solution and click Deploy Now.
3. Review licensing requirements and download the Social Equity Analysis Desktop Application Template.
4. Unzip and open the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro project.

Evaluate conditions and actions

Use the tasks in the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro project to summarize and load data into your broadband reporting areas.

1. On the View tab, in the Windows group, click Catalog Pane
2. In the Catalog pane, expand the Tasks folder, and double-click the Social Equity Analysis task.
3. In the Tasks pane, click the Evaluate Conditions and Actions task group to expand the collection of tasks.
4. In the Tasks pane, double-click the Prepare community asset, condition and outcome data task and follow the steps provided.
5. Review and share results.

Note:

In step 3 of the Prepare community asset, condition and outcome data task, when adding demographic data to reporting areas, keep the Total Population variable but adjust the other variables you’d like to enrich. Some common indicators you may want to use when looking at broadband coverage are:

• HHs w/No Internet Access
• Population Age 65+
• Child Population
• Median Household Income

Relevant community characteristics are unique to each geography, you will want to focus on the characteristics that matter to your community - use the Broadband Coverage Dashboard to help inform your analysis.

If you’d like to summarize download and upload speeds by reporting area. In step 5 of the Prepare community asset, condition and outcome data task, select the BroadbandSpeedTest layer as the Input Summary Features. Under Summary Fields, specify the download and upload speed fields and select “Mean” as the corresponding statistic. By checking the box next to “Add shape summary attributes” a field will be added to the output calculating the number of speed test survey results corresponding to each reporting area.

In step 6 of the Prepare community asset, condition and outcome data task, you can normalize broadband coverage by a chosen demographic variable. Using the example analysis above an average download/upload speed is already normalized, so you can skip this step.

Identify community characteristics

Use the community indicators data, or enriched variables, from the previous steps and the tasks in the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro project to identify focus variables and find areas with a higher preponderance of these factors.

1. On the View tab, in the Windows group, click Catalog Pane.
2. In the Catalog pane, expand the Tasks folder, and double-click the Social Equity Analysis task.
3. In the Tasks pane, expand the Tasks folder, click the Identify Community Characteristics task group to expand the collection of tasks.
4. In the Tasks pane, double click the Prepare community characteristic data task, and follow the steps provided.
5. In step 1, set the Enriched Boundaries parameter as the enriched layer with your summarized broadband coverage speeds.
6. In the Focus Factors (High to Low focus variables), click the drop-down and choose all variables where high values equate to a higher focus. Following the example, choose: HHs w/No Internet Access, Population Age 65+, Child Population.
7. In the Focus Factors (Low to High focus variables), click the drop-down and choose all variables where low values equate to a high focus. Following the example, choose: Median Household Income.
8. Type CommunityCharacteristicsIndex for the Output Layer, click Run.
9. Review and share results.

Create equity analysis index

Use the previously generated broadband coverage and community characteristics data from the previous steps and the tasks in the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro project to identify and rank need across your reporting areas.

1. Open the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro Project.
2. On the View tab, in the Windows group, click Catalog Pane
3. In the Catalog pane, expand the Tasks folder, and double-click the Social Equity Analysis task.
4. In the Tasks pane, click the Create Equity Analysis Index task group to expand the collection of tasks.
5. In the Tasks pane, double-click the Create equity analysis index map task and follow the steps provided.
6. In step 1, set the Input Features parameter as the CommunityCharacteristicsIndex created in previous steps.
7. In the Focus Factors (High to Low focus variables), click the drop-down and choose all variables where high values equate to a higher focus. Following the example, there are no variables.
8. In the Focus Factors (Low to High focus variables), click the drop-down and choose all variables where low values equate to a high focus. Following the example, choose: Average Download Speeds and Rank.
9. Type EquityAnalysisIndex for the Output Layer, click Run.
10. Review the created index, and in step 3 share the resulting Equity Analysis Index as a web layer.

Publish broadband equity analysis index

Once the Equity Analysis Index map is shared as a web layer using the Social Equity Analysis ArcGIS Pro project, the resulting map can be shared with the general public. To add one, or more, layers to a web map, complete the following steps:

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Equity Analysis Index web map.
2. Open the item details and click Open in Map Viewer.
3. In the left pane, click Add, select Browse Layers.
4. Search for the Equity Analysis Index layer or alternative layer that was shared using the Social Equity Analysis tasks.
5. Click the Add button.
6. Open the Layer pane, click the Options ellipses on the Equity Analysis Index layer, click Zoom to.
7. Save the map.
8. Browse to the Equity Analysis Index application, open the item details page and click View Application.
9. The Equity Analysis Index map is now available in the application to be shared.

Explore community need

Once the Equity Analysis Index is created and shared with the public, it can be used by the general public to understand how broadband need is distributed across the community.

You'll now assume the role of a member of the general public. You are asked to use the Equity Analysis Index app to explore broadband need in the community.

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organization and browse to the Equity Analysis Index app.
2. Open the item page and click View Application.
3. Search for an address or click a reporting area on the map.

   A popup will display showing the Equity Rank Score and details for the given area.

4. Review other communities and examine how need is distributed across the region.
5. The Information tab displays details regarding the map.
6. Click the Share icon to copy a link or share the app on social media.