Hawai'i must aggressively seek to reverse a distressing trend: the state's slippage to nearly last place in the U.S. for its Net speed. Among states and developed nations that increasingly have expanded their links to the information superhighway, the Islands have been relegated to the back roads.

The bad news comes in a study by www.SpeedMatters.org, which measured average upload speeds, and it reveals a traffic jam on Hawai'i's broadband (high speed) networks. The speed here was 2.97 megabits per second, which earns the state an appalling 47th ranking among the states and the District of Columbia. Comparison with the Delaware average of 9.91 mbps makes it clear how far there is to go.

And the U.S. as a whole is lagging behind the world leaders: South Korea quadrupled the American average speed.

In Hawai'i, broadband capacity is not given sufficiently high priority on the list of infrastructure improvements deemed essential. But consider: This state is the most remote spot on Earth. Given that broadband data communications can effectively bridge that separation in many practical ways, it would be logical to ramp it up.

That's why the federal stimulus funds represent a beacon for state policymakers because grants are being offered to states that are positioned to rebuild their Net connections. It's encouraging to see that numerous public agencies are lining up to receive a share of the $7.2 billion in stimulus funds set aside for this purpose.

Among the plans is a proposal to build or upgrade fiber optic lines, the "pipelines" that enable massive data to flow quickly, at all schools, higher education institutions and public libraries. Another grant would establish public computing centers on all islands; a third would improve high-speed connectivity between Hawai'i research and education communities and national fiber optic networks; a fourth idea is to enhance communications capabilities for first responders.

The real-time communications these upgrades would enable — in public safety, education and research — would be of immeasurable help for everyone, not the least being Hawai'i schoolchildren, who must prepare for entry into an increasingly competitive world.

The Legislature this year did not embrace one of the Lingle administration's proposals to establish a broadband commission, one way to coordinate system improvements.

This session lawmakers need to come back at that goal, lest Hawai'i be left in the dust of technological and educational advances. The prospects for the next generation will depend on the determination of Isle leaders to bring the state up to speed in an information age.