[oasisbob]

Assuming rural areas have less fiber availability isn't always a good assumption.

In NW Washington state at least, the rural counties (Whatcom, Island, Skagit, etc) have had a robust market in dark fiber for over two decades.

The normal telcos weren't responsive to need, so private carriers picked up the slack. When I was last involved in this market, you could get a P2P strand, including reasonable buildout, for less than a cost of a T1 line with a two-year commit.

The tiny four-branch credit union I worked for had dedicated fiber loops between all our locations, no big deal. It was great.