Verizon Wireless increases high-speed data coverage around Syracuse

Nearly a dozen new locations in the Syracuse area are now covered by a Verizon Wireless high-speed wireless data network, the company said today.

Verizon Wireless rolled out its 4G LTE network coverage to sites in Syracuse, Auburn, Chittenango, Cortland, Fabius, Fayetteville, Jordan, Lafayette, and Mandana, as well as two sites in Mexico. The 4G LTE network, which Verizon Wireless first launched in the area in August of last year, provides average downlink data speeds of five to 12 megabits per second and average uplink data speeds of two to five megabits per second.

“People everywhere are increasingly relying on their tablets, smartphones and apps to stay organized, connected, and entertained,” Verizon Wireless upstate New York Executive Director of Network Gene Fassett said in a news release. “Our investment here in upstate New York and across the country has kept us ahead of this consumer trend and underscores our belief that 4G LTE delivers the best value to customers by maximizing the performance of their wireless devices.”

Verizon Wireless spent over $158 million on increasing network coverage and capacity in upstate New York in 2011. That brings its total spending on the region’s network to more than $1.4 billion since 2000.

The company, which is headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., has 94.2 million retail customers and 78,000 employees nationwide. It is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD).

Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com