Will Cumbria broadband pilot be countywide?

MP Tim Farron has won assurances that South Cumbria will get a share of the multi-million investment in superfast broadband earmarked for the county.

The Government announced last month that Cumbria was to be one of four pilot areas to benefit from around #10million investment to bring 21st century broadband speeds to rural areas.

The Broadband Delivery UK agency is now working with Cumbria County Council on drawing up plans on where to target the investment and will put the project out to tender early next year.

Yesterday (tue) South Lakes MP Tim Farron had a conference with BDUK and Marie Fallon, corporate director at Cumbria County Council, and was given assurances that that South Cumbria would be included in the project.

After the meeting he said: “Just had a really useful meeting about broadband. Our lobbying has paid off - the broadband project will now be extended to the South Lakes.”

Prior to the meeting many people had assumed that the investment would be concentrated in north Cumbria where Penrith MP Rory Stewart had been lobbying hard for broadband and had organised a conference on the issue attended by broadband minister Ed Vaizey.

A spokesman Mr Farron said superfast broadband would help rural businesses and communities where many people worked at home.

Community broadband activists would be recruited in the South Lakes to help stimulate demand and work with the bigger companies bidding to run the project to get : “fibre into homes or as high a speeed as possible.”

Barrow MP John Woodcock is also hoping to see Furness included in the pilot project. “The business case for doing this is demonstrated by BT themselves who need to high speed connections to continue with the exchange so it has the potential to be a major economic boost to Furness.

“So I can we can ensure that the pilot for Cumbria is extended for the whole area.”
The procurement process will begin early in the new year with work starting on laying new fibre mid-2011.

Around six bidders are likely to compete for the subsidy.