BT dives under the Tamar to bring ADSL to Cornish town

By Alun Williams

Posted on 15 Mar 2004 at 14:05

BT has gone underwater for its broadband rollout to Cornwall.

An undersea cable has been used to bring broadband to the Cornish town of Torpoint. In a two-day operation, a kilometre of fibre optic cable was laid across the Tamar River between Devonport and Torpoint.

'Broadband equipment has already been installed in the Torpoint exchange. The undersea cable, which will carry broadband and a wide variety of other high speed data services, was the final major part of the operation' said Lizzie Beesley, BT South West regional director. 'It will expand greatly the capacity of the BT network serving Torpoint and the surrounding area.'

BT states that 600 Torpoint businesses or households had expressed interest in using the service, via a registration scheme. Thus, they say, they are acting to meet proven demand.

BT describes the cable as the first of its kind in the UK. There are no similar projects on the horizon elsewhere, the BT spokesperson told us.

The development was welcomed by the Actnow programme, which was created to encourage businesses to take advantage of the beneifts of broadband in Cornwall. 'Broadband becoming available in Torpoint is another important step forward in the continuing drive to make sure Cornwall takes full advantage of the huge opportunities offered by information and communications technology,' said Nigel Ashcroft, Actnow project director.

The EU-funded Actnow programme was launched back in February 2002, as a test case for providing ADSL services in rural areas. Exchanges at St Ives, Bude, Saltash and Penryn were upgraded last year.

See also:

The Cornish embrace broadband

The Cornish way to rural broadband