Businesses in Swindon will be amongst the first in the UK to benefit from the new ultrafast broadband technology being developed by Openreach, BT’s local network business.
The company this week announced Swindon as a pilot location for its new ultrafast technology, known as G.fast, which provides download speeds of up to 330Mbps – more than 10 times the UK national average.
Openreach plans to make G.fast available to more than 10 million UK homes by the end of 2020, and news of the pilot has been given a warm welcome by Swindon Borough Council.
Thousands of premises in Swindon will be given access to the technology during 2017 with details about exactly where and when to be published shortly.
Councillor Renard, leader of Swindon Borough Council says of the announcement: “I am delighted that Swindon has been chosen as one of the first pilots across the UK for Openreach’s new ultrafast broadband. Having fast, reliable broadband connectivity is critical for the way our businesses and residents work, communicate, shop and learn.
“Swindon’s ambition is to provide access for all businesses and residents to the highest speeds possible and we can now look forward to many more premises in Swindon being able to access broadband through this exciting G. fast technology.”
Clive Selley, Openreach CEO, said: “The UK already leads the way when it comes to superfast broadband. More than nine out of ten homes and businesses already have access to superfast speeds with another 20,000 more premises being enabled each week, and we’re working hard to reach the rest, as well as starting to roll out ultrafast speeds.
“I’m pleased that Swindon will be one of the first locations to get ultrafast speeds using G.fast technology, it’s a technology we’ve chosen because it enables us to get an affordable ultrafast service to as many people as possible in the fastest possible time.”
Following successful technical trials in Swansea (along with Huntingdon and Cherry Hinton in Cambridgeshire and Gosforth in Newcastle) Openreach has announced a total of 17 pilot areas to reach around 140,000 homes and businesses in 2017 with ultrafast speeds greater than 100Mbps.
Openreach has already made fibre broadband available to more than 67,000 homes and businesses in Swindon, through a combination of the company’s investment and a partnership with the county council.
Across the UK, more homes and businesses are now using superfast broadband than in Germany, France, Italy or Spain, and the UK outperforms the EU’s five largest economies on measures such as availability, speeds and take-up according to Ofcom.
