Isle of Skye in Scotland Gains Faster Wireless Broadband Service

A collaborative research project called Tegola, which is supported by funding from the £5 million Community Broadband Scotland Initiative (CBSI), has delivered faster broadband connectivity to premises on and around the remote Isle of Skye (Inner Hebrides).

Until recently broadband services in the area have suffered due to many local homes and businesses residing too far away from the nearest BT telephone exchange. By comparison the new service is able to deliver download speeds of up to 20Mbps over a wireless relay (wifi), which links into the Gaelic College’s (Sabhal Mor Ostaig) own internet connection.

As a result the new connection can also serve Eigg, Rum, Muck, Canna and some other remote areas.

Jem Taylor, University of the Highlands and Islands’ IT team, said:

“Commercial internet providers have so far failed to find an economical way to reach these remote, sparsely populated and often mountainous regions, meaning many are being left behind in the digital revolution. Now we’ve established the model works, it has the potential to be used in other rural communities.”

Local ISP HebNet has also played a crucial part by extending the reach of its existing wifi network.