High speed internet for Wirral

Oct 5 2011 by Liam Murphy, Birkenhead News

HIGH-SPEED broadband allowing computer users to access the internet at ever faster rates will be installed in Wirral.

Residents in Greasby will start a six-month trial which could help propel the UK to the forefront of the digital world, shaping the country’s future and leading to a radical upgrade of the nation’s broadband infrastructure in rural areas.

Volunteers in the Halton Crescent area will receive next generation services from Virgin Media or TalkTalk for the first time. It will be delivered by a new fibre optic network created by Fujitsu on the outskirts of Greasby and capable of broadband speeds of 1Gb – almost 150 times faster than the national average.

More than 7,200 more homes and businesses will also have access to faster broadband using by the spring of next year, BT announced last week.

Mountwood was among the latest communities in the region to be included in the roll-out plans for BT’s next generation copper broadband service.

The BT investment makes available broadband speeds of up to 20 megabits per second – more than double the maximum speeds previously available to the majority of UK homes and businesses.

The technology is already available in more than 35 communities across Merseyside, including Arrowebrook, Bromborough, Caldy, Heswall, Irby, Rock Ferry and Wallasey.

By the spring of next year, around 85% of North West premises are expected to have been upgraded.