Tauranga high speed broadband roll-out completed

Tauranga high speed broadband roll-out completed

Thousands more Tauranga residents can now benefit from faster internet access as local telecommunications network operator Chorus completes its work to rev-up broadband speeds.

Chorus has deployed 60km of fibre optic cable and installed 147 new fibre fed cabinets to enable broadband speeds of at least 10Mbps to homes and businesses across urban Tauranga.

This three-year investment programme has built upon the 400km of fibre already in the Tauranga network and is part of Telecom's commitment to enable the delivery of high speed broadband to 80 percent of New Zealanders by the end of this year.

Chorus General Manager of Network Build Chris Dyhrberg said around 52,000 Tauranga residents are now within reach of faster internet access.

"We've extended our fibre optic cable network further into local neighbourhoods and installed new roadside cabinets. These cabinets provide broadband services to those customers who were previously too far from the broadband equipment in their local telephone exchange to access fast broadband,"

"Service providers are already installing broadband equipment which can deliver speeds of up to 40Mbps for customers within about one kilometre of our cabinets," he said.

Tauranga customers who are near the local telephone exchange will continue to receive service directly from the broadband equipment located at the exchange.

In addition to completing the broadband network upgrade, Chorus has opened up access to its existing business fibre network for ultra-fast broadband (UFB) services at significantly reduced prices.

"We have a large existing fibre network, particularly in the CBD area, which many internet service providers can use to connect Tauranga businesses to ultra-fast broadband today," said Dyhrberg.

Businesses can find out if they are within Chorus' business fibre coverage area by checking their address online at www.chorus.co.nz/ch-ournetwork

Mr Dyhrberg noted that customers also have an important part to play in making the most of the new faster broadband capability.

"A customer's broadband service is also affected by factors including their broadband plan, modem, computer, and the wiring in their home or business. We encourage Tauranga residents who believe their broadband performance is still limited in some way to talk directly with their broadband service provider."

Many phone and internet service providers deliver services using Chorus' network. Chorus focuses on doing what they do well, building and maintaining networks, so providers can create great new services tailored for their customers.

In all, Chorus now only has 220 fibre-fed broadband cabinets left to deploy to complete the national rollout of 3,600, building on Telecom's existing 27,700km national fibre optic cable network.

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