"The reason that is possible is because of digital compression, which allows us to take the space of an analog channel and put 12 digital channels – audio and video - in that same spot. We can fit 45 digital music channels, which are just audio, in that space."
     Orr added that not only will the project please customers by meeting the demand for more channels, but that the digital system will add to Adelphia's reliability as well.
     "It will greatly enhance the reliability of our system," Orr said. "We'll have new power supplies with battery backups, which will last about three hours, which is more than enough time for a technician to get out there with a generator."
     The areas affected by the upgrade will include the City of Cullman, Cullman County, Blountsville, Kimberly, Morris and Warrior.
     Orr noted that Adelphia would have many contractors on the roads during the coming year, as many miles of fiber optic cable will be run in Cullman and the surrounding counties.
     "We intend to provide the best quality service money can buy and the most reliable service," Orr said. "This project will greatly enhance our ability to meet our customers' needs."
      Adelphia's expansion project began in late February of 2002 and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2003.
      The March 6, 2002 meeting at which Orr announced Adelphia's expansion marked the third official gathering of the Utilities Alliance. Consisting of representatives of local public utilities, members from the Alabama Department of Transportation, several cable and telecommunications companies and many local officials, the Utilities Alliance is described as an "informal group" by its President Randall Shedd.
     "We meet every other month to have lunch and discuss the projects that each utility has going so that there is better communication and less overlap," Shedd said. "For some it's an opportunity to put a face with the voice they hear on the phone. We try to keep it as informal as possible."
     Shedd — also the Mayor of Fairview and the Director of the Cullman County Economic Development Office — said he lead the effort to form the Utilities Alliance at the urging of several utility groups and then was nominated to be its president.
     "Grady Smith of the Cullman Electric Cooperative and Mike Manning at the Cullman Power Board and a number of others suggested that the utilities needed some way to meet their upcoming projects and we just took it from there," Shedd said. "I think it's important for all of us to communicate and work together."
     The next meeting of the Utilities Alliance will be held on Wednesday, May 1.