eX² Technology, the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), and the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) will lease dark fiber along ADOT’s Interstate 17 — under the 20-year Indefeasible Right of Use agreement — to Cox Communications.
This 141-mile fiber segment leased by Cox will directly support the existing Schools and Libraries Program (E-rate) aimed at connecting Arizona schools and educational institutions along the I-17 corridor.
The agreement comes on the heels for eX² Technology’s first dark fiber commercialization agreement with Wecom Fiber, announced in late July.
ADOT’s statewide network includes dark fiber and conduit assets along the 1-17 corridor as well as along I-19 from Tucson to Nogales and an active 202-mile construction project along I-40W from Flagstaff to the California border to be completed at the end of 2026.
According to a press release, these routes are the foundation of an open-access middle-mile network made possible through more than $140 million in state-directed federal funding.
The routes are part of the Arizona Statewide Middle-Mile Program, which is designed to enhance broadband access to unserved and underserved areas by improving the middle segment of the network, which links local providers to major internet hubs.
The Arizona Statewide Middle-Mile Program It was designed to complement Arizona’s last-mile programs — including the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, E-rate, and Digital Equity programs — and is now part of Governor Hobbs’ ConnectAllAZ statewide initiative to enhance broadband connectivity across the state.
“Arizona is setting a national example for how strategic investment and collaboration can transform digital infrastructure,” Kyle Hildebrand, Chief Revenue Officer of eX² Technology, said in a prepared statement about the Cox deal.
“This agreement with Cox not only helps bring high-speed broadband to schools and communities that need it most — it also underscores our shared commitment to closing the digital divide, expanding access, and building a more connected future for Arizonans.”
Cox was recently named among the provisional BEAD grant winners in Arizona.
