Villagers urged to back Grafham broadband

VILLAGERS in Grafham are being urged to lend their support to get superfast broadband access rolled out across 90 per cent of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough by 2015.

Cambridgeshire County Council has recently announced plans for investment in superfast broadband across Cambridgeshire. Alongside �6.75 million of Broadband Delivery UK funding, Cambridgeshire County Council has earmarked �20 million to enable the roll-out of superfast broadband into areas within Cambridgeshire not covered by BT’s �2.5bn superfast broadband investment plans.

Peterborough City Council has also earmarked funding.

The county council expects that public sector funding will complement the planning private sector investment from BT within Cambridgeshire as part of an overall public/private investment package in digital infrastructure that could total �70 million over the next four years.

Grafham’s superfast broadband champion Chris Bulow is urging villagers to add their names to the Connecting Cambridgeshire campaign – the more who sign up the better the prospects for rural Cambridgeshire.

Mr Bulow says the current broadband provision in Grafham is a lottery, where neighbours can experience substantial differences in broadband speeds and reliability.

“While there are some fortunate residents with download speeds of about 4 or 5 Mbps, many residents struggle with speeds of 1-2Mbps or below. Furthermore, many residents suffer from frustratingly regular disconnections. Superfast broadband brings huge improvements in speed and reliability, crucial for regular broadband use.”

He adds that superfast broadband is now no more expensive than basic broadband.

INFORMATION: Sign up at http://www.connectingcambridgeshire.co.uk/