Peachtree City

customers of AT&T Broadband are now able to walk in to the local office

to get service instead of calling one of the company's service numbers.

AT&T officials

made the change after city officials received over 40 complaints from

residents about cable service in July and August. Previously, local residents

were left to use the new service numbers, spurning numerous complaints

about not being able to get through and long hold times, said Betsy Tyler,

the city's public information officer. Some residents said they waited

over half an hour or more on hold to speak to a AT&T representative

when using the service numbers.

Reg Griffin,

executive director of communications for AT&T, said Peachtree City

customers can now go to the local office for service issues, billing problems

and other cable needs.

"You can

do everything there face-to-face," Griffin said.

The city has

also cited AT&T Broadband for failing to provide service to 35 occupied

homes in new subdivisions. It is likely that the city will not seek a

fine, Tyler said, unless the improvements aren't made by the time company

officials have indicated.

Griffin said

AT&T officials have presented a buildout plan for those subdivisions

and a timeline for construction to begin.

Providing service

to all homes in Peachtree City is a stipulation in the company's franchise

agreement with the city, Tyler confirmed.

The agreement

also requires AT&T to hold an annual public meeting for local customers;

it has been scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 25, at City Hall. Customers are

invited to learn about the planned upgrade of the system and to express

complaints to AT&T executives. Griffin said the company's vice president

of engineering, Mark Davis, and its vice president of customer operations,

Kirk Dale, will be present at that meeting.

Griffin said

the company has also been holding its own public meetings and plans to

do so in Fayette County on Tuesday, Nov. 13, although the location has

not been selected yet.

Griffin said

the upgrade of Peachtree City's cable system for digital cable is underway.

It will involve some service interruptions at times, but the company tries

to keep those limited to before 6 p.m., Griffin said.

"We try

to hold interruptions to a minimum and outside the prime time hours,"

Griffin said.

The upgrade

will allow for the channel lineup to be expanded, Griffin said. The upgrade

was recently completed in Fayette County with excellent feedback from

customers, he said.

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