UK altnet CityFibre has given John Penrose, the MP for Weston-super-Mare, a closer look at its £22m project which will connect homes and businesses in the town to a new full fibre network.
During the visit, CityFibre representatives gave the MP a tour of the works and introduced him to full fibre digital infrastructure, the best network technology currently available.
The project, which kicked off in January 2021 in Milton and Winterstoke, is expected to be completed by the end of 2023. However, the first services will go live for residents to take advantage of much sooner as each neighbourhood is finished.
Each area usually takes just a few weeks to complete but construction teams will typically only be outside each home for two to three days and CityFibre will be in touch by mail ahead of any work starting.
Kathryn Askew Smith, CityFibre’s city manager for Weston-super-Mare, said: ‘It’s great to see such enthusiasm for the digital infrastructure we’re building beneath the streets of Weston-super-Mare. This is the start of an exciting new chapter for the town as it gets ready to thrive in the digital age.
Penrose added: ‘I’ve lost count of the number of people I’ve tried to help get better broadband speeds over the last few years, so it’s great to see these big fibre investments coming to Weston. Whether it’s zoom calls, World of Warcraft or just checking email and doing a bit of online shopping, this will put Weston right at the front of the digital queue in the whole of the southwest. Which is exactly where we ought to be.’
The network is not yet live, but once activated, services will be available from a range of broadband providers.