Google's blazing fast fiber Internet service is coming to 18 cities across four new metro areas. Those living in and around Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville and Raleigh-Durham will have access to gigabit Internet in the not-too-distant future, marking the largest expansion of Google's fiber service yet.

Google Fiber Vice President Dennis Kish on Tuesday said bringing fiber to these cities is a long-term investment that they've been working on with city leaders over the past year.

The work is far from done, however, as the next step is to create a detailed map of where Google can lay its thousands of miles of fiber. The plan is to use existing infrastructure such as utility poles and underground conduit. From there, a team of surveyors and engineers will finalize plans before construction gets under way.

Google is continuing to evaluate five additional metro areas for fiber expansion: Phoenix, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Antonio and San Jose. Those living in and around these areas can expect an update on the matter later this year.

Pricing wasn't mentioned although I suspect Google will recycle the pricing structure it has previously used. In Austin, for example, Google charges $130 per month for gigabit Internet and TV service or $70 for just the gigabit Internet. Those who only have basic net needs can pay a one-time fee of $300 and get 5Mbps / 1Mbps connectivity for free.