Race for super-fast broadband hots up
BT has announced the five front-runners as its nationwide “Race to Infinity” competition, for communities to demonstrate demand to fast track super-fast broadband, enters its last month.
People have been voting online in their thousands in the unique race, launched on October 1 this year, which gives people the chance of their area being one of the first to enjoy fibre optic broadband. The five areas with the largest percentage of votes by December 31, 2010 will win the chance to bring super-fast BT Infinity broadband to their area.
The top five leading the field now, are:
1 Blewbury, Oxfordshire
2 Caxton, Cambridgeshire
3 Castleton, Newport
4 Madingley, Cambridgeshire
5 Whitchurch, Hampshire
Following closely on their heels are Burley in Wharfedale in Bradford, Sutton on Sea in Lincolnshire, Market Drayton in Shropshire, Malvern in Worcestershire and Barrow in Furness in Cumbria.
More than 290,000 votes have already been cast right across the UK, from the most northerly parts of Scotland to the south of England, with households and businesses keen to take part in the BT survey.
The five winning areas¹ will be upgraded by early 2012 at the latest. BT is also pledging to engage with any community not winning the competition where at least 75 per cent of homes and businesses have voted for super-fast broadband.
People can vote for their area and influence BT’s future fibre broadband plans by visiting bt.com/racetoinfinity, going to “vote now” and entering their details.
John Petter, managing director of BT’s Consumer division, said: “Thousands have voted, but there is still a long way to go before we reach the finishing line and everything to play for. Superfast speeds can transform your online life whether you’re social networking, gaming, streaming video, uploading or downloading. So please vote now and don't forget to spread the word by passing it on to your friends on Facebook and Twitter to get your area to the top of the scoreboard.
Across the country, super-fast broadband active campaigners have been downloading information packs, flyers and posters from the Race to Infinity web site as they drum up support for fibre to come early to their community.
BT announced its latest plans for super-fast broadband last week, to further support the Government’s vision of creating the best super-fast broadband network in Europe by 2015. The company’s commitment involves plans to conduct a technical trial of one Gigabit fibre broadband speeds in Kesgrave, Suffolk and the inclusion of up to 40 rural market towns in the next phase of BT’s deployment of super-fast fibre broadband.
BT has pledged £2.5 billion to deliver super-fast fibre broadband to two thirds of the UK by 2015. The rollout is well underway, with more than three million premises passed. By the end of 2010, this will have increased to four million premises.
BT is also committed to working with Government to find ways of delivering fibre to the remaining third of UK homes and businesses. Public sector support will be required to help bring fibre to these areas, as we have seen in other countries.