High speed broadband access is made available to communities

Hundreds of homes and business in Perth and Kinross have gained access to high speed broadband now that engineers have completed a major upgrade of the broadband network.

Communities such as Auchterarder, Blairgowrie, Comrie, Crieff, Kinross, Perth, Kinfauns and Strathtay are among the latest to be reached by the £428 million project.

Engineers had to find innovative ways to access some communities, laying hundreds of metres of new cables directly from exchanges to homes and business premises, bypassing the usual roadside cabinets.

The Scottish Government said it would now fall to residents to take advantage of the improvements by signing up for the faster services with an internet service provider, as upgrades are not automatic.

Fibre broadband should enable internet users to access download speeds of up to 80Mbps.

This will be a huge bonus to many local people – and rural business owners in particular.

Cabinet secretary for the rural economy and connectivity, Fergus Ewing, said: “More than 90% of Scotland now has fibre broadband.

“The Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband programme is progressing further and we are reaching some very small and more remote communities, as well as extending coverage for places like Crieff and Kinfauns.

“During the summer months our existing programme will continue to advance across the country, bringing high speed broadband to new rural communities.”

Local people can check the Digital Scotland website to find out more on availability.