CityFibre begins £30m Cheltenham full-fibre rollout
CityFibre has officially started work to deliver its full-fibre network across the town of Cheltenham. The operator says that the £30 million rollout will make full-fibre connectivity available to “almost every” premises in the town.
Construction of the network is being delivered on CityFibre’s behalf by infrastructure services firm Kier Group and has broken ground in the district of Alstone. CityFibre projects that the overall rollout will be completed by the end of 2023, but that the first connections will go live far sooner.
CityFibre claims that work will typically take just a few weeks in each area and that, with Kier Group, it will work closely alongside local communities and Cheltenham Borough Council to minimise and disruption the rollout might cause.
CityFibre City Manager for Cheltenham Neil Madle said: “This is the start of an exciting new chapter for the town as it gets ready to thrive in the digital age.”
“As the UK’s first dedicated hub supporting the growth and development of cyber security businesses, technology, research and skills, Cheltenham needs the fast, reliable and future-proofed digital connectivity that only full fibre infrastructure can provide if it’s to fully realise its Cyber Central ambitions.”
“It’s important to remember that any short-term disruption will pay off tremendously in the long-term – once the network’s built, it will serve the community’s connectivity needs for decades to come.”
Cheltenham MP Alex Chalk commented: “Securing fast, reliable broadband for all residents, businesses and services across Cheltenham has long been a key personal priority, so it’s fantastic to see work now underway on CityFibre’s ambitious £30m infrastructure rollout.”
“Investments such as this aid economic recovery, with this once in a generation upgrade future-proofing our network infrastructure at a time when digital connectivity has never been so important. Not only will this make Cheltenham an even better place to live, work and visit, it will strengthen our position as a world-leading hub for cyber technology.”
