NYC Has Sunk Nearly $1B Into Faulty Wireless Network: Report

NEW YORK — A wireless network that recently broke down for more than a week has cost New York City close to $1 billion, a new report says. The city has paid the defense giant Northrup Grumman $891.1 million since it picked the company in 2006 to run the New York City Wireless Network, which lets the city control traffic lights remotely and perform other tasks, the New York Post reported Sunday.

Also known as NYCWiN, the broadband network gives city agencies dedicated voice, data and video communications. It allows the Department of Transportation to remotely manage traffic and the Department of Environmental Protection to read water meters automatically, according to the city's website.

But a time-counter "rollover event" caused the network to go down for 10 days after the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications apparently ignored a warning from federal officials to prepare for the issue, the Post reported.

Despite that blunder, the DOITT told the Post it plans to extend Northrup Grumman's contract to June 2020, which will likely add at least $40 million more to the city's bill.

Read the full New York Post report here.