St Albans to benefit from superfast broadband in BT project

SUPER-fast broadband will be available in parts of St Albans from early next year. BT has announced that it will be installing fibre-based broadband in the district as part of a �1.5 billion project. Speeds of up to 40Mb/s will initially be available to

SUPER-fast broadband will be available in parts of St Albans from early next year.

BT has announced that it will be installing fibre-based broadband in the district as part of a �1.5 billion project.

Speeds of up to 40Mb/s will initially be available to more than 130,000 homes and businesses in the six communities in the East of England set to benefit. The others are Hemel Hempstead, Watford, Luton, Leagrave and Chelmsford.

That speed is expected to increase to 60Mb/s - more than 10 times that experienced now by most UK households.

Nearly 24,000 premises in the St Albans district will benefit from the new service in early 2010.

The project is the first major phase of the UK's biggest-ever investment programme in super-fast broadband with BT pledging to spend �1.5 billion by 2012 to ensure 40 per cent of UK homes and businesses - some 10 million premises - can enjoy fibre-based broadband.

Peter McCarthy-Ward, East of England regional director for BT, said: "Super-fast broadband is essential to this region's future so it is great to announce this initial set of locations.

"Once again the East of England is at the forefront of one of the most important projects to take place in recent years.