Bournemouth will begin the deployment of a fibre network
within the next six months,bringing next-generation broadbandand
connectivity to all homes and businesses in the town.
This will be the largest network project in Europe, and H2o
networks will be funding and providing the network at a cost of
about £30m. The majority of the fibre will be put in the sewers
using the
Fibre Optical Cable Underground Sewer System.
The fibre will provide ultra-high bandwidth to all of
Bournemouth's businesses and more than 88,000 homes at speeds far
exceeding current DSL or cable modem speeds, typically by tens or
even hundreds of Mbps.
Bournemouth Borough Council plans to use
the network for video conferencing social workers to keep
vulnerable people safe. It also intends to use the network to
enable real-time monitoring of traffic using CCTV. Finally, it is
hoped that faster broadband speeds will improve the use of ICT in
schools.
Where the sewers are not a viable way to deploy the network, H2O
Networks will install the cable using its patented Blown Mini Duct
system. With this method, a small, 20-millimetre wide slot is cut
into the road in order to lay the cable.