Verizon Wireless ticked off another milestone today, expanding its LTE network to cover three-quarters of the U.S. population.

The operator, whose LTE coverage has surpassed its competitors since the network launched in late 2010, lit up the service in 34 new cities today and grew its existing footprint in 38 other areas.

“We are ahead of schedule with our 4G LTE market rollout and will provide 4G LTE network coverage to more than 400 markets in the near future,” CTO Nicola Palmer said.

The extended network is now available to more than 75 percent of people living in the United States and spans 371 markets, Verizon said. It is aiming to match its CDMA footprint with LTE coverage next year.

Verizon’s aggressive deployment schedule has kept it far ahead of top competitor AT&T’s current 51 markets. Meanwhile, Sprint has its LTE network running in a handful of markets, and T-Mobile USA plans to launch LTE next year.

Verizon’s rollout has not been without a few hiccups. The LTE network has suffered a number of network outages since it first launched, but it has been months since customers reported major problems.