CityFibre has begun work to connect more than 45,000 homes and businesses across areas of Leicestershire and Warwickshire to full fibre thanks to an award of £77m as part of Project Gigabit.
Wessex Internet’s mole ploughs have broken ground in Stapleford as the altnet begins its physical work to deliver fibre to 14,500 homes and businesses in south Wiltshire.
This work is part of a £18.8m Project Gigabit contract awarded to Wessex in March and will be delivered over the next five years.
It will see the altnet expand its existing network in the Wylye Valley, going across the Salisbury Plain, connecting villages surrounding Amesbury, and going as far north as Chisbury and Little Bedwyn. The first communities to be connected will be Stapleford, Wylye and Bapton.
Wessex has also reached a significant milestone in delivering its first Project Gigabit project in the North Dorset area, with more than 50% of the properties in this contract now connected.
CEO Hector Gibson Fleming said: “Wessex Internet is determined to continue our mission delivering ultrafast broadband to rural communities that would otherwise be left behind by traditional providers.”
“We will continue working closely with the residents and businesses across these two contract areas, involving them in our planning process.”