AGOURA HILLS TO RECEIVE RADIO INROAD INTO NET : SERVICE CUTS NEED FOR 2ND PHONE LINE.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

Local Web browsers may soon be surfing the Net without a wire.

Already popular in Northern California and Seattle, the Ricochet system by Los Gatos, Calif.-based Metricom Inc. offers access to the Internet and off-site computers via radio modem instead of phone lines.

The city of Los Angeles and smaller cities such as Agoura Hills have already given the company permission to install the equipment on street light posts. Calabasas and Westlake Village are considering the company's proposal.

Metricom approached Agoura Hills officials in May, and residents should be able to sign up for the service early next year, said Elroy Kiepke, city engineer for Agoura Hills.

``There are many computer-oriented businesses here - Litton, J.D. Powers. There are home pages set up,'' Kiepke said. ``Many people work out of their homes as individuals. They won't have to bring in an additional phone line to hook up to the Internet.''

Washington, D.C., will be the next city to receive the Ricochet service, but the Los Angeles and New York areas are not far behind, said Leanne Buck, spokeswoman for the company.

``Ideally, they'd like to cover the entire U.S.,'' Buck said. ``They want to hit high population areas with high use of laptops.''

Metricom must apply to cities for a Right of Way agreement to install the small black boxes, but it does not pay cities for the access. Once Metricom has customers in the area, however, it will be considered a utility and will be required to collect a franchise fee from customers and pass it on to the city, Kiepke said.

The company installs six radio repeaters per square mile, so Agoura Hills will be receiving 48 boxes. Customers generally must be within a quarter-mile of the radio repeaters to hook up, but an unimpeded signal can travel for several miles, Buck said.

Customers pay a flat monthly fee of $29.95 for the service and have the option of renting the special modem, the size of a television remote control, for $10 a month or purchasing one for $300, Buck said.

The Ricochet system is different from a cellular telephone, which also allows people to send computer data, because it gives customers more options, Buck said. For example, Ricochet can handle computer information in bulk while cellular phones can handle only smaller pieces.

Kiepke said he is considering using the new technology in his department. Some street lights in the city are hooked up to computers that monitor the amount of traffic going through an intersection, he said.

With Ricochet, Kiepke said he would be able to access that information from his office. Then he could decide to change the light intervals to speed the flow of traffic.

``I can check to see, `Is the system operating correctly?' I can maybe adjust the timing of the traffic signal,'' Kiepke said. ``If the technology exists for me to control it, I can make the changes.''