UPDATE Cityfibre to Begin Delayed Build of Glasgow’s 1Gbps FTTP Network

Cityfibre has announced that the roll-out of their new multi-million-pound and 40km long Gigabit fibre optic (FTTP) broadband and Ethernet network in the city of Glasgow (Scotland) will begin within the next 3-4 months, which seems to represent a delay from the original “early in 2016” plan.

Last year Cityfibre pledged, with support from local ISP partner HighNet, that they would “ultimately deliver the huge benefits of pure fibre connectivity to the whole city” and that the new network could offer “internet connectivity [that is] up to 100 times faster than the UK average.”

Phase One of the construction should have begun in early 2016 (focus on the city centre) and this would have then put the infrastructure within “close reach” of up to 7,000 local businesses and public sector sites (including 7 local hospitals) by the end of 2016, rising up to 15,000 by completion.

However today’s release states that the roll-out will now commence “later this year” and will then “go live in early 2017,” although Cityfibre clarifies that “early 2017” doesn’t represent completion because “the first phase will take up to 12 months to complete.” No reason for the delay is given, although such things rarely go precisely to plan.

As part of this work HighNet has opened its first Central Belt location in St Vincent Street, which is being supported by an investment of £250,000. HighNet has also recruited 8 new employees in the city and adapted the 4000ft2 office space to include a range of technical and customer facilities.

James McClafferty, CityFibre’s Head of Regional Development, said:

“In cities like Glasgow, the rise of new technologies is radically transforming the way we live and work, and this means that our digital connectivity can either be a barrier to growth and innovation or a catalyst for economic and social development.

Working with HighNet, we want to make sure Glasgow has the infrastructure it needs to compete with other cities in the UK and across the world. Every Gigabit City we build provides local businesses, Government, public services and mobile operators with a modern fibre infrastructure, capable of meeting their data connectivity and communication needs now, and for decades to come.”

CityFibre are currently in the process of completing Gigabit City projects in 37 cities around the United Kingdom, such as Aberdeen and Edinburgh. The operator aims to reach as many as 50 UK cities by 2020, which has been made possible by last year’s £90m acquisition of KCOM’s UK network assets (here).

UPDATE 1:55pm

According to a spokesperson for Cityfibre, the reason for Glasgow’s roll-out being a bit behind schedule is because they “prioritised the completion of our Edinburgh Gigabit City project, which grew significantly in scale since our partnership with Commsworld was first signed” and this took the focus away from Glasgow. Edinburgh is now “approaching completion” and thus they will soon be able to shift that focus back towards the Glasgow build.