Crawley’s network rollout has reached another milestone, with the first residents now benefitting from full fibre connectivity. CityFibre is investing £23m to bring the fastest and most reliable digital connectivity to the town. Construction work began in 2020 and, once complete, the network will be within reach of almost every home and business in the area.
The network is now completed in parts of Ifield, Gossops Green and Langley Green, with the first customers now live and able to access gigabit-capable internet services. The first two consumer internet service providers (ISPs) to offer services on Crawley’s CityFibre network are Zen and TalkTalk.
David Carey, the first resident to sign-up for Zen’s gigabit-speed broadband in Crawley, had registered his interest a few months before CityFibre began building near his home in Gossops Green. David works from home and while he does enjoy gaming occasionally, his priority was to make laggy video calls and frozen screens a thing of the past.
David says: “Once the infrastructure was built, and I was able to sign up with Zen, it all went quite smoothly. I selected a date for installation and when the team came to my property, they asked where I wanted the router placed, and were quick, friendly, and professional.
“They did not leave until they made sure everything worked and that the connection was speed tested. The difference in internet speeds from my previous network was immediately noticeable.”
Anne Krausse, Area Manager at CityFibre, adds: “I was so pleased when I heard David was going to be our first customer in Crawley to take advantage of the full fibre benefits. He immediately recognised how transformational a full fibre connection can be.
“People just can’t believe how much faster it is, for both, downloading and uploading, and how reliable the connectivity is. It’s amazing to see the hard work pay off and CityFibre’s infrastructure come to life.”
In Crawley, CityFibre’s network roll out is set to move into areas such as Ifield West, Bewbush and Broadfield. As progress continues local businesses and residents will be kept up to date on plans for each community, highlighting the benefits that access to full fibre will bring to all. Customers can sign up to UK launch partner, Vodafone, on selected Vodafone Pro Broadband plans, as well as Zen and TalkTalk with other providers, such as Giganet, expected to join the network soon.
