This week I had an interesting if not very helpful meeting with BT and a Council officer from ‘Connecting Shropshire’ about Broadband in Snailbeach and Stiperstones.
We were told that the ‘Openreach Line Checker’ (which indicating speeds people were receiving in our area) was faulty and would be overhauled to give the correct speeds. They thought it unlikely that any properties in Stiperstones were receiving superfast speeds, these being only guaranteed for 1.2 kilometres from the new cabinet in Snailbeach.
The copper wire cables serving most properties in our area is not able to deliver high speeds over long distances. When asked if there were any plans to replace the old wire they said that it had not been built into the business plan.
We asked what options were there for the future? BT said they were piloting fibre cables being carried on poles instead of underground. They are also experimenting with new technology which enhances the speed and range from boxes on the poles themselves. We asked if there was a time frame for this? – not yet was the reply. Will it be built into the BDUK contract to improve delivery? No-one was sure!
www.vodafone.co.uk/rural. There is also our home grown ‘Secure Web Services'(SWS).
Frankly despite all the hullabaloo by Shropshire and BT there doesn’t seem to be any more commitment to delivering broadband properly for rural areas. We deserve much better that this.
Heather Kidd
Shropshire Councillor for Chirbury and Worthen Division.