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Looks like FTTC is finally coming!

After years of an agonsing wait a road closure is in place during the day down our country lanes, driving along one evening I noticed BT written by the manholes. Could it be I thought?

So I checked Roadworks.org yesterday and BT are running ducting to the green cabinet, this morning I wondered if there were to be any further works.

Lo and behold yes there are, they are installing two new cabinets one very close to us. I'm delighted, this will make working from home a better possiblity as well as being able to stream Netflix without any concerns.

It will be a little bit of a wait yet, fingers are crossed for the end of the year.
 
Good news! But don't cross those fingers too tightly, I recall it was about 12 months between the time we saw an FTTC cabinet being installed and the service itself actually going live. Experiences do vary though and hopefully yours will be ready much sooner.
 
Good point well made, I've dealt with Openreach over many years.

The cables for the new cabinet closest to me are scheduled to be run in September, I know they have been installing these new smaller units in some areas. Anyone know what they are called?
 
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If by small units you mean smaller FTTC cabinets then that's all they are, no special name except for an ECI or Huawei designation based on port count. Alternatively perhaps you mean the smaller remote nodes that get installed on poles to supply VDSL2/FTTC or G.fast? However right now those are very niche and not really used.
 
If by small units you mean smaller FTTC cabinets then that's all they are, no special name except for an ECI or Huawei designation based on port count. Alternatively perhaps you mean the smaller remote nodes that get installed on poles to supply VDSL2/FTTC or G.fast? However right now those are very niche and not really used.

Notes on roadworks.org say

OTFORD - 12 - 370211 - 369797 - STREET CABINET & POWER INSTALLATION. Excavate to lay approx 4m BT ducts, Lay concrete plinth, Stand cab.Excavate and lay 21m of duct to Power Pole for Overhead Connection. Reinstate, Check and clear site. Verge/CW
 
As I'm impaitent I emailed my local county and they replied with the following.

You are connected to the BT Otford Exchange, with service routed via Street Cabinet PCP7. This is located along Birchin Cross Road at Clarks Green Lane. It is remote from most of the premises it serves and is a long way from the exchange with poor network supplying it. As such, providing a fibre upgrade to that cabinet is not proposed - it is too expensive and would not work properly once we had finished.

Instead, we are currently planning to build two replacement cabinets nearer to the premises served - one at the crossroads of Goodbury Road / East Hill Road and another along East Hill Road, just outside East Hill Farm. This second new cabinet is the one you will be connected to and I estimate that you will be around 700 metres or so away from it. This will mean that we will be able to provide Superfast broadband (25Mbps+) to you once it is installed and commissioned.

There is a lot of work to be carried out - cabinet installation, power connections, fibre cabling, new poles, tree pruning, etc. The two locations are not simple and the work required is difficult (because we are restricted on closing the road to complete the works - there is no alternative route) and we have to agree wayleaves with private landowners to manage trees, install ducts, cabinets etc. Because of the specific difficulties with the engineering required it is hard to be accurate with a forecast for completion.

The works are under way now and I am discussing the detail with BT Openreach on a weekly basis to make sure they keep on top of the problems as they arise. I am confident it will be completed during the current financial year - I am pushing BT Openreach to finish earlier - optimistically I believe completion by Christmas is possible.

I hope this helps explain the issues. I apologise if you are inconvenienced by the works we are carrying out - please bear with us whilst we get it all sorted out.
 
So last week the 1st cab was installed!

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The closer cabinet is to be installed soon, guessing tthe big job is to connect the cabinets up and then transfer the lines? Will I be getting an early Christmas present!?

It's about time Openreach updated their website....

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Last edited:
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For some reason those images don't show. I suspect that they can't be seen by those without access to that specific account or service (i.e. not public).
 
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Second cabinet currently being installed with power, smaller than I expected! (will take a better picture at the weekend)

IMG_2066.jpg
 
Last night as I drove home, an Openreach with two engineers parked up working in the dark. I quizzed them, they were clearing the ducting to be able to blow the fibre through.

I enquired how they might proceed past that point, because as I understand it where they were is the end of the ducting in the road. Unfortunately they didn't know this information.

One suggested that may lay ducting, can't see that myself down a country lane. I suspect it will be run overhead.

I'll keep you posted.
 
Was working from home yesterday and an OR engineer pops round to say they are working on the pole at the entrance of our driveway, replacing a joint there which is full of water. Mentioned they are replacing lots of joints in the area before the FTTC upgrade is complete, which was pleasing to hear. Had many copper line faults over the last 12 months.

I enquired if he knew anything about the running of fibre, he said some new poles had been installed in field. I had not noticed them and there are indeed some new poles and on a run the other week I noticed a load of trees had been cleared between two fields, possibly running through there.

It would seem that progress is being made.
 
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Been a while since my last update.

Just before Christmas Openreach closed some of the road for about two weeks and I believe were putting in/clearing ducting, lost of movement. Noticed that for the last stretch they also ran a new overhead cable (looks blue).

Next roadworks are booked in for March, contacted Openreach who informed me that they are aiming for completion in July. Little bit longer than I was expecting if honest.

The main thing is that it is coming, fed up of 2MB now.
 
Update: Messaged Openreach at the beginning of the year to find out the ETA for FTTC, they said June but could slip. At the start of this week I emailed the broadband team at the council to enquire how things were going, today they replied and informed me that the cabinet went live overnight (last night).

So that's it, order is in! Currently have 2mb and predicted speed 38 to 40! Will make such a difference.
 
Are they doing it for free? Or did you have to get together with residents and pay?
My parents in law had to round up the local village in order to get cables laid (think their speed was a lot faster than yours already though!) Hope it all happens quickly for you from now on and you get to work from home soon!
 
Yeah all for free, no community project needed. All part of BDUK.

FTTC ordered and my go live date is the 16th April.... wish it was now! haha
 
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