Well, here's the latest on dear old Cab 7 in Winterbourne:-
Dear z1ts
I said that I would let you know once I have any more information on cabinet 7 in Winterbourne. I can confirm that, at this time, cabinet 7 is not currently in the plan to be upgraded.
The aim of the Council’s Superfast Broadband Project is to achieve the best possible long-term broadband coverage for South Gloucestershire with the budget available. To achieve this, the rollout of the new fibre network takes into consideration a combination of several factors, such as existing infrastructure, current broadband access speeds, the number of homes and premises in the area and the distance of homes and businesses from the infrastructure (the telephone exchange or green street cabinet).
This methodology will enable us to ensure that by March 2016, all premises within South Gloucestershire Council’s intervention area can access at least a standard broadband service (2Mbps). The project aims to ensure that 94% of premises across the county are able to access superfast broadband (24Mbps+). The rollout is being designed to ensure the network provides the greatest possible coverage with the available funding. We have taken into account many factors, including geography, planning requirements and the location of the existing telecoms infrastructure. These factors will dictate the order of the roll out. This approach will ensure the best value for money, but it does mean that we cannot deviate from how the network will be rolled out across the area, as doing so would result in a time-consuming and costly project, and would ultimately reduce the number of premises we are able to deliver superfast broadband to.
We don’t have enough funding to upgrade every broadband cabinet in South Gloucestershire. We are looking at opportunities to extend our coverage to include additional premises, such as your parents’ house, that are not currently in the plans to be upgraded. We are constantly reviewing our progress and processes to ensure maximum time and cost efficiencies. Any cost savings made will be reinvested into the project to extend our coverage further. Central Government has acknowledged that, although investment in superfast broadband across the country has been significant, it has not been able to provide 100% coverage in most local authority areas. The Government has recently made further funds available as part of the Superfast Extension Programme (SEP).
Providing superfast broadband remains a key priority for South Gloucestershire Council and we have already invested £2million into this complex infrastructure project. Additional funding will enable us to push the existing coverage even further. The Government has confirmed the SEP fund will need to be match-funded locally, so the next step is for South Gloucestershire Council to explore this opportunity in greater detail, and identify potential match funds.
If you have any further queries please don't hesitate to contact me.
Kind regards
Is there anything else we could potentially pursue??
It's all a bit annoying really, as the Cab is only about 600/700m from the Exchange and as the honourable Black Sheep pointed out the fibre passes Cab 7 so they've dug up the road once and laid fibre!!! Also Cab 7 is about 200m from my parents' house so could be absolutely ideal for a FAST FTTC service!
