During the last four months, the family-owned company responded to a rush of government requests for expanded internet access in remote areas of Roanoke, Appomattox, Bedford and Campbell counties, said B2X CEO Warren Kane.

“Those expansions are coming online; all of them are really starting to move forward now,” Kane said. “People are actively connecting.”

Broadband expansion became a top priority last year for local governments, connecting people to church, work and school from home during COVID-19 shutdowns. Roanoke, Appomattox, Bedford and Campbell counties used federal coronavirus relief funds to expand residents’ internet access, partnering with B2X, which is a wireless provider, and cable service providers alike.

“What B2X is doing, a lot of problems with getting internet into a certain area is sometimes topography, which is not good for traditional burying of cables,” said Bill Hunter, Roanoke County’s communications director. “All of the current B2X projects are wireless mesh.”

In the four-county area, B2X is finishing installation on more than 100 internet access points affixed to towers, poles, barn silos and other structures, expanding the coverage area of its wireless mesh broadband network, which transmits internet through microwaves to receivers on customers’ homes.

“We spoke to several manufacturers that we’ve been buying this equipment from,” Kane said. “We actually ran them out of gear a couple times.”

Spurred by governments spending funds they received through the coronavirus relief bill — Campbell County contributed $1.5 million, Appomattox County paid $528,059, Roanoke County spent $600,000 and Bedford County used $112,000 — B2X’s internet service can now reach as many as 4,000 homes that were previously without access, or were plodding along on too-slow satellite connections. The company served about 2,700 customers before the recent network expansions started going online, Kane saidwere plodding along on too-slow satellite connections. The company served about 2,700 customers before the recent network expansions started going online, Kane said.