A new City of Seattle study, based on input from residents, reveals that the percentage of homes with internet access has increased in the past five years, but significant disparities persist, especially in homes where English is not the main language.
The Technology Access and Adoption Study was released Monday by the Seattle Information Technology Department, as part of the City’s Digital Equity program.
The report collected input from more than 4,600 residents through a citywide general population survey — conducted in eight languages — as well as 40 focus groups.
The survey found that home internet access in Seattle increased from 95% to 98% from 2018, the date of the last study. But an estimated 8,123 households within the city cannot access the internet at home, according to the report, which said that those who do not speak English as their main language are four times more likely not to have internet access at home.
The goal of such technology access — and the Digital Equity program — is to ensure greater civic and cultural participation, employment capabilities, lifelong learning, and access to essential services.
“Improving digital access, literacy, and equity is essential to our city’s future and is a cause I have championed for years,” Mayor Bruce Harrell said in a statement. “A strong, thriving city encompasses many aspects, and the ability to get online easily for work, school, and just the daily tasks that are now rooted in our connected world is essential for successful, healthy families.”
The report touches on such issues as telehealth use, prolonged internet interruptions, adequate screen size, devices per household, and awareness of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The city also partnered with Native groups to gather the first-ever urban Native digital equity snapshot.
Highlights include:
- One in 20 households have fewer than one internet device per household member.
- Over half (54%) are interested in training on how to protect yourself and your data online.
- 1 in 6 Native households dealt with internet outages of a month or more.
- 71% have made a health appointment online, but lower income residents use telehealth less.
- Nearly 44,000 households have significant needs for improvement in access, devices, uses and skills using a new digital connectedness index.
- 11% of BIPOC households do not have internet access both at home and on-the-go.
- Focus group participants expressed needs for training in-person, online and hybrid.
