In this paper, we propose a novel polling algorithm to decrease the number of idle slots and collission slots during the polling cycle by evaluating the bandwidth request of the subscribe stations (SSs) in the next polling cycle for broadband wireless access (BWA) systems. We firstly analyze the feature of silent time intervals and deduce the Hurst index which symbolizes the degree of self-similarity and long-relative nature. Then we represent the inactive OFF time intervals by the Pareto model and estimate the shape parameter α by the group measured data. Finally we can evaluate the transmission probability of a silent SS before the next polling cycle. By this algorithm, we can find the optimal transmission opportunities for the base station (BS) to achieve the least collision or void timeslots in order to achieve the largest bandwidth efficiency. The theoretical analysis and simulation results show that this polling algorithm can improve the performance for BWA system. © Shanghai Jiaotong University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011.