Broadband Internet Access in the South East

By: Cathal O' Riordan

The subject of Broadband Internet access has received much coverage in recent TSSG articles. It will undoubtedly change the way we live and work as it becomes more prominent in our daily activities. Eventually, every home in Ireland will reap the benefits of high speed, always on access to the Internet.

In March 2002, the Irish government published a strategy for continuing our progress as an Information Society in its New Connections [1] policy report. The report identifies a number of objectives that must be met to ensure continued success in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector. One of the objectives is the provision of Broadband Internet access to businesses and citizens throughout the State by 2005. Adequate and affordable broadband is seen as a key enabler in securing and retaining direct foreign investment, thus improving social and economic development. To ensure that Ireland realises its potential as an Information Society the government is undertaking an initiative to provide the necessary broadband infrastructure throughout Ireland. It is called the Regional Broadband Programme [2].

A number of towns and cities around Ireland have been identified as candidates for the construction of public owned optical fibre networks. These Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs) will be designed to target areas where broadband Internet access is an essential service such as schools, hospitals, businesses and Local Government. Each MAN involves the construction of a series of trenches within each town or city, into which the optical fibre cable is laid. These networks will serve as the high capacity backbone networks necessary to provide residential and business broadband Internet services throughout Ireland.

Under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) agreement the regional networks will be provided on an open basis to telecommunications operators who will provide broadband services to private and business customers alike.

The networks remain in the public domain (through Local Authorities) and will support any number of operators who want to enter the market. This is expected to promote a competitive environment, which will drive the cost of Internet access down and increase the uptake among Irish users. The rollout strategy chosen for the broadband programme should minimise the disruption usually associated with infrastructure work of this kind.

Phase 1 of the Regional Broadband Programme is currently under way and construction has already begun in some of the initial 19 cities and towns around Ireland. Phase 2 will see a further 48 towns included in the programme.

The South East Regional Authority (SERA) [3] is responsible for the roll out of MANs in Waterford, Kilkenny, Carlow, Clonmel, Wexford and Dungarvan under the auspices of the SERPANT (South-East Regional Public Access Network of Telecommunications) project. Dermot Ahern TD, Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources officially launched the eur14 million project on 27th of August in Wexford. The expected completion date has been set for the end of the first quarter of 2004 and will see the installation of over 100Km of fibre optic cable around the south east region.

The author would like to thank Frances Buggy of SERA for her help in writing this article. For more information contact - frances.buggy@southtippcoco.ie

[1] New Connections Government
Action Plan, March 2002
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/
upload/publications/1153.pdf

[2] Regional Broadband Programme
http://www.dcmnr.gov.ie/
display.asp/pg=865

[3] South East Regional Authority SERPANT Project is available at
http://www.sera.ie/serpant.htm