Bolton 2,200 can log on to high speed broadband as uk rollout reaches 2 million homes and business
High-speed broadband key to business growth says Bolton Cabinet councillor
Network reaching into the heart of communities says BT chief
More than 2,200 Bolton businesses and homes can now benefit from high-speed fibre broadband rolled out by the £15 million Get Digital Faster programme across Greater Manchester.
The milestone was marked with a launch of a further green street cabinet in Spa Road, Bolton on Friday.[photo attached and caption below]]
By 2016, there will be more than 70 green street cabinets bringing high-speed fibre broadband to more than 6,000 homes and businesses across Bolton, thanks to the Get Digital Faster partnership involving Bolton and BT.
Bolton Council’s Executive Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Resources, Cllr Ebrahim Adia, said: “I’m delighted that Bolton residents and businesses will start to benefit from further high-speed fibre broadband under the Get Digital Faster programme. Faster internet connections will particularly help our small to medium sized businesses to compete in a 21st century economy, and is key to encouraging business growth.”
The Bolton achievement comes hot on the heels of the national announcement today that the Broadband Delivery UK rollout of high-speed broadband has reached 2 million homes and business across the UK.
Bill Murphy, managing direct Next Generation Access, said: “Today marks a giant step forward in the rollout of fibre broadband in Bolton, Greater Manchester and across the UK. In Bolton more than 2,200 homes and businesses now have access to high-speed fibre broadband thanks to Get Digital Faster. In March next year more than 6,000 Bolton homes and businesses will have access and more than 99 per cent of the eight-council area in Greater Manchester when you take into account commercial rollouts.
“Working in partnership with Bolton we have been able to reach into the heart of scores of communities across the region that have so far been beyond the reach of this vital technology. Already we can see the impact that fibre is having with the Government’s estimate of more than 56,000 jobs created as a result of this rollout by 2024 and rural economies benefiting by around £9 million every day due to the work being done now.
We are proud to be delivering on our promises and BT’s high-speed fibre network now reaches almost 22 million premises nationwide – around three quarters of the UK – but we recognise there’s more to do. “
Residents and businesses in Bolton can look forward to download speeds of up to 80 megabits per second and upload speeds of up to 20Mbps*
This will bring benefits to homes and businesses alike. Businesses will be able to conduct their transactions more quickly and efficiently and households will be able to surf the internet, download large files of information, upload photographs, and download music, films and television programmes all at the same time, and more quickly than ever before,
The Get Digital Faster programme, launched in June last year, has already delivered high-speed broadband access for 16,000 across Greater Manchester.
The North West European Regional Development Fund has provided £4.9 million, BT £4.6 million, £3 million is from Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) initiative and local councils (Trafford, Stockport, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Tameside and Wigan) £2.5 million. The Get Digital Faster programme is being delivered by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and BT on behalf of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).
The programme also links into a Business Growth Hub**, which along with local councils will provide businesses with the skills and expertise making the most of the opportunities a sophisticated broadband network will provide.
Work on the Get Digital Faster project is well underway across the region. Engineers from BT’s local network business, Openreach, are laying around 400 kilometres of optical fibre cable – the equivalent of twice around the Greater Manchester boundary - and installing a total of around 500 new fibre broadband cabinets throughout the area. It is estimated that 150 people involved in delivery will complete more than 500,000 staff hours of work planning and building the network during the lifetime of the project.
The Openreach network is open to all broadband service providers on an equal wholesale basis. When an area has gone ‘live’ for fibre, people need to opt for an upgrade from a choice of fibre broadband providers, with more than 140 now operating in the UK.
Residents or businesses who want to find out more about Get Digital Faster can visit www.get-digital.info
ENDS
1. **The Get Digital Faster project is part financed by the North West European Regional Development Fund Programme 2007 to 2013.
The Department for Communities and Local Government is the managing authority for the European Regional Development Fund Programme, which is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support local businesses and create jobs. For more information visit
https://www.gov.uk/browse/business/funding-debt/european-regional-development-funding
2. Established in 2011 the Business Growth Hub has helped thousands of businesses across Greater Manchester, from established and large companies to start-ups and SME enterprises. Accountable to the Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnership, the Business Growth Hub’s challenge is to ensure that companies across Greater Manchester reach their full potential and are able to access the right support and services to meet their needs.
