Essex County Council can announce that Superfast Essex Broadband is one step closer to being made available in parts of Essex that currently receive a much slower service.
The Essex BDUK Project has obtained approval from DCMS on 28 Nov to commence procurement in early February 2013, meaning it is hoped that contract can be awarded in late July, a marked improvement from the earlier expectation of late August/September. This means that works may be able to commence during the summer period which would offer scope to align with other highways maintenance or utilities work which minimises the level of disruption for Essex residents.
Over the past few months, Essex County Council and partners have been working with BDUK to demonstrate that Essex is ready to work on the upgrade for our residents.
Essex County Councillor Kevin Bentley, Cabinet Member for Economic Growth said, “It’s great that our hard work has been recognised by BDUK and we may able to begin work on rolling our Superfast broadband sooner than originally thought. We have written to Essex MP’s and with their help, we have shown that Essex is ready to provide these services to residents that are currently unable to access them.
“Faster broadband speeds will bring benefits to our residents and local businesses which in turn may have a positive impact on Essex’s economy.”
Over the past few months, Essex County Council has been running a survey which aims to measure the demand for Superfast broadband across the county. This will help the service provider to determine which areas of the county should be upgraded first. Residents and businesses can register their need for superfast broadband here: www.essex.gov.uk/ruralbroadband.