Councils close to signing "Superfast Broadband" contract with BT

[WillPS]

98% coverage must surely mean all exchanges are fibre enabled - with the other 2% being direct-to-exchange connections and connections too far from cabinets?

[alexatkin]

Quote:The Superfast South Yorkshire project will make South Yorkshire an even more attractive place to live and do business, bringing new investment to the region and generating an economic return of more than £270 million2.

Wow, I have never heard THAT one before.... oh wait....

Also, I wonder how this is going to work in Sheffield where they have replaced the pavement? I was under the impression there was an agreement that nobody could dig it up within x years of it being replaced and its inevitable that sometimes BT will need to as not all ducting will be in good condition, I don't think everywhere even USED ducting.

[gribz_uk]

(19-09-2014 08:08 PM)alexatkin Wrote:  Also, I wonder how this is going to work in Sheffield where they have replaced the pavement? I was under the impression there was an agreement that nobody could dig it up within x years of it being replaced and its inevitable that sometimes BT will need to as not all ducting will be in good condition, I don't think everywhere even USED ducting.

Going by the chats I had with Jack Scott on Twitter re: Manor Lane and the emergency electric cable replacements the council normally makes the company pay for the road/pavement to be resurfaced again.

However, I think in this case the council's will probably cough up again. Don't want to upset their new BT overlords now they are doing a full fibre rollout, out of the goodness of their hearts...

[alexatkin]

That said, the new pavements are dreadful. They took so long between skimming the surface and laying the top that it allowed dandelion seeds to settle. The small stretch outside my house already has several dandelions growing through it so it will be trashed again within 12 months.

[Ray_Von]

Anyone got any updates on BT and the council signing a deal to get us poor ADSL users back onto fibre?

[gribz_uk]

Deal has been signed, last update I received was that they are now starting surveys and planning. First new cabinets planned to go live Summer 2015.

Still no news how the City Centre exchange conundrum will pan out though.

[Zytron]

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/201...cheme.html

Interesting development. Does this mean that BT/council have no excuse from upgrading Sheffield cutler now, since the rules no longer "prevent" them from doing the work due to not being rural?

[WillPS]

Or perhaps the change has been made at the request of SCC?

[WillPS]

Got this today from SCC:

Quote:Dear Sheffield Business,

Superfast Broadband rollout in South Yorkshire

Superfast South Yorkshire is a new programme which will provide 97.9% of the region with access to superfast broadband services.

As part of the development of this programme we are seeking to understand the experiences of local businesses.

As a business based in South Yorkshire, we would like to know:

How you use broadband now
If you are aware of how superfast broadband could help your business become more successful
What type of broadband services you may need in the future to help you achieve this success

We would therefore be grateful if you could spare us a few minutes of your time to complete this online questionnaire.

Unfortunately the funding for this programme cannot be used within Sheffield City Centre; however, Sheffield City Council is working closely with the Government to find other ways of providing better access to superfast broadband in the city centre.

One potential method could be to offer businesses a government subsidy to cover the majority of the cost of installing a superfast broadband service. This would be available to SMEs in any part of Sheffield.

To help us access this government funding, it’s very important that we can demonstrate that there is demand for superfast broadband services, particularly in the city centre. You can help us demonstrate that demand simply by completing the questionnaire.

Many thanks for your support. We will keep you informed as we progress.

The Superfast South Yorkshire Team



Background

Sheffield City Council along with the other South Yorkshire Councils has recently entered into a contract with BT to provide access to superfast broadband services to 97.9% of the region.

The first new cabinet is expected to go live in November 2015 with the final phase of the roll out completed around the end of 2017. This is being delivered through the Government’s Rural Broadband Scheme which you may have seen advertised recently.

The Superfast South Yorkshire Team has created a website and will be publishing information about the scheme soon.

To complete the survey, go to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SFSYBusiness

[essenby]

As an ex-customer of a Digital Region provider I would guess that your answers to those questions would be pretty detailed