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BT pledges to bring superfast broadband to 98 per cent of Cambridgeshire

BT has done a deal with Cambridgeshire County Council will see 98 per cent of premises across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough benefitting from superfast broadband upgrades. 

The project will see people able to access faster speeds of at least 24Mbps by the end of 2015, with those in the last 2 per cent bracket able to get at least 2Mbps speeds. 

Last month, it was announced that at least 90 per cent of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough would be able to access superfast speeds. We were told to expect that the final percentage figure would be upwards of 95 per cent, but until now we’ve not had a more accurate figure at our disposal. 

BT pledges to bring superfast broadband to 98 per cent of Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough – We are the 98 per cent

Read Recombu Digital’s report on BT’s Broadband Rollout Upgrades

Councillor Nick Clarke, Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “This is a super deal for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, which will make us one of the best connected areas in the UK over the next three years. 

Some areas such as Herefordshire and Gloucestershire will only see superfast connections rolled out to 88 per cent, while 93 per cent of Cumbria is due to get superfast broadband. Then again, Northamptonshire has some lofty ambitions; to be 100 per cent superfast by 2017

Bill Murphy managing director Next Generation Access for BT, added: “The Connecting Cambridgeshire programme will open up the county to a wealth of opportunities such as growing business and creating jobs in rural areas, providing health, education and public services in better ways.” 

The majority of homes and businesses will be able to access either FTTC (Fibre to the Cabinet) and FTTP (Fibre to the Premises) broadband once the project is complete. BT’s FTTC lines provide top download speeds of 80Mbps while the FTTP connections provide a much faster top speed of 330Mbps. 

By the end of 2015, BT’s FTTP On Demand programme, where customers can pay to convert an FTTC connection to an FTTP one, will also be live, though this is shaping up to be a bit pricey right now. It’s estimated that FTTP On Demand prices will be around £1,500, meaning it’ll only be of interest for small businesses and deep pocketed individuals in the short term. 

BT was awarded the contract off the back of the UK Government’s BDUK programme. BDUK is a £530 project aimed at giving the UK’s broadband infrastructure an overhaul. The Government wants the UK to have the best broadband in Europe by 2015. While we might not hit this target, along the way thousands of people will be able to benefit from a better broadband experience.
 

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