KCOM plan that could end row over new telegraph poles
Plans for broadband providers to share KCOM’s infrastructure have been drawn up, potentially meaning an end telegraph poles being put up according to the company.
The results of KCOM’s feasibility study setting out how other broadband providers could use the company’s infrastructure have been passed on to Connexin for consideration.
A KCOM spokesperson said they had worked flat out to come up with the plans which could potentially spare households from the stress and inconvenience of new poles being installed.
A Connexin spokesperson said they would respond once they have had chance to review the findings. It follows repeated calls from local councillors and MPs for companies to share existing infrastructure to stop new poles and underground cables being installed.
Hull and East Yorkshire MPs Diana Johnson, Karl Turner, David Davis and Graham Stuart met with companies in January to try to find a way forward. Connexin first lodged an application to access KCOM infrastructure in October and the latter confirmed in January it was assessing their request.
The announcement yesterday brings the prospect of the two companies sharing infrastructure a step closer.
The details of the framework drawn up by KCOM remain commercially confidential.
It is hoped discussions between them and Connexin could start in April, subject to the latter’s feedback on the proposals. KCOM stated that while it is willing to work with other companies to provide fair and reasonable access to infrastructure by using their sharing service, they added it has not received any requests from other companies for access to its infrastructure.
The company’s spokesperson said: “Since receiving Connexin’s request for access to our passive infrastructure in January, our teams have worked flat out, from a standing start, to create a blueprint of systems and processes to handle and deliver requests for sharing KCOM’s ducts and poles, potentially saving local residents from the stress and inconvenience caused by the proliferation of new poles in streets across Hull and East Yorkshire.
“Today, we’ve passed that to Connexin, on a confidential basis, and asked for its views. We want to know if it would meet Connexin’s requirements.”
Connexin’s spokesperson said: “We have received the results of a feasibility study on the development of an approach to infrastructure sharing by KCOM. We will provide our response once we have had a chance to review their findings.”
A round table meeting on broadband infrastructure is due to be held on Saturday, May 25 with Digital Infrastructure Minister Julia Lopez set to attend. The minister told the Commons yesterday that she hoped to get a better sense of the scale of the problem.
She told MPs: “I hope we will get a better sense whether we need to take action against particular providers or deal with specific issues on the ground, particularly in Hull. When I meet Ofcom next week, I hope to discuss this issue in some detail.
“I will set out the general policy aim and then the next steps that we will take to address communities’ concerns. It is absolutely right that they are addressed, because this is not what we want to happen.”