Press Launch
An revolutionary ‘Dig As soon as’ coverage is constant to show its worth in lowering carbon emissions, minimising disruption and efficiently increasing the county’s digital connectivity.
By means of Gentle Blue Fibre, a three way partnership between Cambridgeshire County Council and the College of Cambridge to commercially market the fibre property of each the College and the Council, this forward-thinking strategy helps to yield substantial environmental and financial advantages.
The Dig As soon as coverage, which was first launched in 2019 as a part of the Connecting Cambridgeshire programme, integrates fibre ducting into new transport infrastructure initiatives.
Councillors on the Council’s Asset & Procurement Committee assembly on Tuesday 15 October got an replace in regards to the progress of Gentle Blue Fibre during the last 12 months, and heard how the Council’s Dig As soon as Coverage of putting in fibre ducting into new transport schemes allows telecom operators to keep away from pricey retrofitting and reduces carbon emissions.
So far, over 21km of extra fibre ducting has been put in or is deliberate throughout Cambridgeshire by 2025, making certain gigabit-capable broadband is rolled out shortly and effectively. The coverage has already prevented the discharge of greater than 20 tonnes of CO2 – the equal of almost half one million miles pushed by a mean automotive – whereas lowering the necessity for pricey, disruptive roadworks.
Cllr Ros Hathorn, Chair of Cambridgeshire County Council’s Property and Procurement Committee, mentioned: “The Gentle Blue Fibre enterprise showcases the worth of long-term collaboration and the significance of strategic planning to ship greener and smarter infrastructure.
“Connecting Cambridgeshire’s Dig As soon as coverage demonstrates how we are able to work collectively to enhance connectivity whereas lowering carbon emissions and disruption in our communities. By integrating digital infrastructure into our transport planning, we’re not solely delivering short-term advantages but additionally laying the groundwork for a sustainable, related future for the area.
“Thus far, this coverage has resulted in an enormous CO2 discount and considerably much less disruption to street customers, due to the proactive set up of ducting as a part of new street initiatives.”
Gentle Blue Fibre has performed a pivotal function in enabling telecom suppliers like CityFibre and Gigaclear to attach hard-to-reach areas, rushing up the deployment of gigabit broadband and benefiting 1000’s of houses and companies. Pre-installed fibre ducting has allowed Gigaclear to keep away from disruptive engineering works and supply full-fibre broadband to over 2,000 properties in Linton and surrounding communities.
In Whittlesey, fibre ducting put in below the brand new Ralph Butcher Causeway – constructed to interchange the Kings Dyke degree crossing – is being utilized by CityFibre to deliver gigabit connectivity to over 5000 houses and companies that may in any other case have been difficult to succeed in throughout busy rail strains.
Gentle Blue Fibre can also be in discussions with a world cloud companies supplier to additional prolong the attain of its infrastructure, making certain that the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough space continues to profit from cutting-edge digital connectivity whereas supporting the Council’s ambition to succeed in web zero carbon emissions by 2045.
