UK fixed line provider Openreach is planning to extend its Gfast network to an extra one million homes and businesses.
Eighty one locations, including cities such as London and Manchester, will be connected to the technology during the next eight months. Openreach’s G.Fast network is already available in 250 locations across the United Kingdom.
The technology uses existing infrastructure and cabinets and removes the need to dig up roads to lay cable. Its speeds of up to 330MBps are seven times the UK’s average of 47MBps, Openreach said.
This morning’s announcement is the latest step in the company’s attempts to connect 5.7 million properties with the technology.
It has also promised to bring FTTP to 10 million premises by the mid-2020s. The company said it is on course to break through its target of three million connected homes and businesses by 2020.
Kim Mears, MD for Strategic Infrastructure Development, said: “Currently, the UK is a world leader in digital infrastructure and services, but as the digital revolution rushes forwards and the demand for data continues to grow, we need to sure we stay ahead of the curve. That’s why we’re investing in faster, more reliable network infrastructure.”
In September, Openreach switched on fibre to the premises in Liverpool in the north west of England, its tenth location since launching its Fibre First project at the beginning of 2018.