Around 27,000 Oxfordshire homes are set to benefit from faster broadband speeds by summer 2012, BT has announced.
Houses in Eynsham, Rowstock and Boars Hill are among 63 communities in the South East included in the scheme to more than double the maximum speeds. The technology is already available to 77 per cent of homes and businesses in the South East, and is expected to increase to 86 per cent by next summer.
Councillor David Robertson, deputy leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: “We very much welcome this latest announcement from BT. Faster broadband is going to play an essential role in the future success of this county. In an increasingly competitive and technological world it is essential that local businesses and households have access to high-speed sophisticated communications. Just like roads and railways, broadband is a vital part of the infrastructure of Oxfordshire.”
John Weaver, BT’s South East regional director, said: “BT’s roll-out of faster broadband across the South East is running at a very rapid pace. At a time of economic uncertainty these major improvements will provide a big boost for local businesses and offer many additional educational and entertainment opportunities for local households. We want to work with the public sector to find ways of bringing faster broadband to areas which are geographically and commercially more challenging.”
BT is predicting speeds of up to 20 megabits per second, and will be available to all companies that provide broadband services. The investment is in addition to the plans to have fibre-optic broadband available to two thirds of UK premises by the end of 2014.
