New broadband comes to Rutherglen

Thousands of homes in Rutherglen have become some of the first in the UK to benefit from a new, ultrafast broadband network.

Built by Openreach, more than 9,000 homes in the Royal Burgh as well as parts of south Glasgow, have already had the service installed.

The move is part of a UK pilot of cutting edge G.fast technology.

Openreach plans a national rollout of ultrafast broadband to 12 million homes and businesses by 2020.

Download speeds of up to 330 megabits per second (Mbps) – about ten times the UK average – will be available.

People using it will be able to download a two-hour HD film in just 90 seconds, a 45-minute HD TV show in just 16 seconds, and a nine-hour audio book in just three seconds.

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken welcomed the news, saying: “High-speed broadband has an essential role to play in everyone’s lives – whether at home or in business.

“It’s great news that thousands of local people in Glasgow are among the first in the UK to be able to upgrade to a new technology which offers ultrafast speeds.

“As demand for faster broadband speeds increases, I was pleased to be able to see how the latest technology will meet people’s needs.

“The arrival of ultrafast broadband means local people and firms can do more online, more quickly and on multiple devices and there’s lots of evidence to show it boosts the local economy.

“I want Glasgow to be the leading digital city in Scotland and this investment from Openreach will support that.”

David Nixon, Openreach senior fibre delivery manager in Scotland, added: “My team are excited to be part of this work in Glasgow to pilot the latest technology.

“We already have the first Glaswegians benefiting from our ultrafast speeds with G.fast, and our engineers are continuing to install more of this new technology across the city.

“Developing the technology of the future is a key part of Openreach’s work. Around nine out of ten homes and businesses already have access to superfast speeds in Glasgow over the Openreach network, with a choice of around 580 service providers.

“Faster speeds are more important than ever, and we’re sure our new ultrafast network will play an important part in the future success of Glasgow.”