Three months of roadworks between Ripon and Harrogate start tomorrow

Three months of nighttime roadworks are scheduled to begin tomorrow on the main road between Ripon and Harrogate.

The A61 will be dug up as part of fibre optics company City Fibre‘s £46 million digital infrastructure upgrade in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.

Traffic lights are scheduled to be in place until July 13.

Kim Johnston, regional partnership director at City Fibre said:

“Works will take place 7pm to 6.30am, Monday to Friday, with the road returned to two-way traffic every morning.”

A City Fibre spokesperson added “there may be a small amount of weekend work, subject to confirmation with highways”, adding:

“If this is the case, City Fibre will actively avoid any weekend with a major local event like Harrogate Flower Show.”

The entire length of the A61 between Ripon and Harrogate will be affected, including some residential areas.

Asked whether people could expect drilling and other noise at nights, a CityFibre spokesperson said it “working closely with the council and managing disruption as best they can”.

City Fibre is installing next generation full fibre connectivity to almost every home and business in the area.

Ms Johnston added:

“This is a major undertaking, which is why we work closely with our build partner, local authorities and the council’s highways team to manage disruption as best we can and ensure works are delivered quickly, and always to our high standards.”

Read more:

Three months of roadworks on A61 from Harrogate to Ripon set to begin

Roadworks are set to bring three months of disruption to motorists travelling between Ripon and Harrogate.

The A61 will be dug up as part of fibre optics company City Fibre‘s £46 million digital infrastructure upgrade in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.

Work has been completed in most areas. However, signs have gone up on the A61 Ripon Road warning that nighttime work will take place between April 17 and July 13.

Kim Johnston, regional partnership director at City Fibre said:

“From April 17, we will be starting work on the A61 between Harrogate and Ripon.

“This work will last for approximately three months and will require traffic management on one side of the road.

“Works will take place 7pm to 6.30am, Monday to Friday, with the road returned to two-way traffic every morning.”

Traffic lights will be in place during these hours, and no detours are planned.

A City Fibre spokesperson added “there may be a small amount of weekend work, subject to confirmation with highways”, adding:

“If this is the case, City Fibre will actively avoid any weekend with a major local event like Harrogate Flower Show.”

The entire length of the A61 between Ripon and Harrogate will be affected.

Ms Johnston said:

“CityFibre is investing £46m in transforming Harrogate and Ripon’s digital infrastructure and bringing next generation full fibre connectivity to almost every home and business in the area.

“This is a major undertaking, which is why we work closely with our build partner, local authorities and the council’s highways team to manage disruption as best we can and ensure works are delivered quickly, and always to our high standards.”

Read more:

 

Harrogate’s Otley Road to be dug up again

Harrogate’s Otley Road is to be dug up for the second time in just over a year.

Work is due to start on Monday, February 20 and last for two weeks subject to external factors such as weather.

North Yorkshire County Council contractors spent three months creating the first phase of the Otley Road cycleway between September and December 2021.

The same stretch of road is now set to be disturbed again to allow the firm City Fibre to install fibre optic cables that will enable people to receive full fibre-enabled broadband services.

City Fibre is nearing the end of a £46 million upgrade of broadband connectivity in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon. Otley Road will be the last area to be completed in Harrogate.

The county council was due to begin remedial work early this year on cycleway design faults and defects highlighted by residents and Harrogate District Cycle Action.

But a report to councillors for a meeting tomorrow says:

“In May 2022 the fibre optic network company City Fibre contacted North Yorkshire County Council with a request to install fibre optic cables down the full length of the newly constructed cycleway.

“We have negotiated with City Fibre to reinstate the full width of the cycleway at their expense. We will therefore carry out our outstanding remedial works once City Fibre have installed their apparatus.”

Read more:

Kim Johnston, City Fibre area manager, said in a press release sent out previously that the firm will repair defects at its own expense when it makes good the road. She said:

“We are working closely with North Yorkshire County Council in this area as we understand that the footways on Otley Road have undergone recent resurfacing.

“With the council’s agreement, as part of City Fibre’s essential development works, the footways will be restored, including repairs to defects that North Yorkshire County Council were due to carry out.”

 

The no nonsense Yorkshire internet provider shaking up the status quo

This article is sponsored by Boundless Networks

Yorkshire-based Boundless Networks is shaking up the world of broadband providers. It’s taking on big-name companies with straight forward packages, no contracts, and excellent customer service.

You can now pre-register to get speed of light full fibre internet, on the CityFibre network, with a FREE activation fee (usually £30) when most homes in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon are connected in the near future.

No nonsense, no hidden fees, no contracts

Mbps (megabits-per-second), Gbps (gigabits-per-second), it can all get a little confusing. But the best way to think of it is like the internet’s equivalent of miles-per-hour. The bigger the number, the faster it is. The faster it is, the more traffic you can consume, traffic being anything that a device like a phone or Xbox sends and receives over the internet. This means a household of data-hungry devices can do their thing when they want, without it impacting other devices or people trying to use the internet.

Sometimes it feels easier to crack the Da Vinci code than understand a broadband package. With Boundless, it’s simple: you pay a fixed monthly price for your internet. That’s it. No confusing add-ons or complicated package names. A home phone and extra equipment to increase the Wi-Fi coverage around your home is still available to those who need it.

You won’t be handcuffed into a contract with extortionate get-out fees, or face any nasty surprises in your bill.

Prices start at £32 a month for 150Mb per second average download speed. That means you can download a 4K Ultra HD movie on Netflix in 12.5 minutes.

At 500Mbps (£38 a month), you can download the same film in under 4 minutes.

Or at 900Mbps (£62 a month), you’ll be able to do it in just over 2 minutes.

Excellent customer service

There’s a reason Boundless can operate without tying its customers into contracts. Customers want to stay.

A Boundless customer is 358% more likely to recommend their services to a friend or colleague than other internet service providers, according to data from Ofcom and Survey Monkey.

You only need to take a look at Boundless’ Trustpilot reviews to see how happy their customers are…

Emma Wilkins: “Boundless have THE BEST customer service. If anything goes wrong they are super quick to fix it, and really friendly too. Such a great team – thanks!”

Graeme Robinson: “The outstanding service I have had from Boundless deserves the highest praise… The results are outstanding and I now continue to choose Boundless because they are the best and have the best people.”

Edward Taylor: “I wouldn’t dream of changing my internet provider now I’ve found Boundless. If I could give 10 stars I would.”

 

Pre-register for Boundless Networks’ Full Fibre internet, and claim your free activation here.

Special Offer: Pre-register for no-contract Full Fibre internet in Harrogate & Knaresborough

This article is sponsored by Boundless Networks

Boundless Networks’ Full Fibre internet will be available in Harrogate and Knaresborough very soon. Here’s why you need it, and how to get it with no hidden fees, no contract, and a FREE activation fee.

How to get Full Fibre internet from Boundless Networks

Yorkshire company Boundless Networks uses CityFibre’s newly-installed full fibre network to bring speed of light internet straight into your home. Cables are currently being installed across Harrogate and Knaresborough, with Ripon to follow in 2022, and the first Boundless customers’ homes will be connected next month.

Boundless’ no contract, no hidden fees and no nonsense packages are designed to pair the excellent user experience of Full Fibre with excellent customer service ratings. A Boundless customer is 358% more likely to recommend their services to a friend or colleague than other internet service providers*.

Most homes in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon will be able to access Full Fibre internet in the near future. When you sign up to with Boundless Networks there’s usually a £30 activation fee. But you can get that for free only if you pre-register now.

What is Full Fibre?

Fibre refers to the type of cable used in telecommunications infrastructure. Fibre cables transmit data at the speed of light, and the broadband is far more reliable than older networks.

Genuine Full Fibre internet uses fibre cables from the data centre or exchange, all the way into your home.

Some delivery methods, known as ‘fake fibre’, use a little bit of fibre up to a certain point to give their old networks a boost. But because fibre cables aren’t used the whole way from the exchange into your home, it can be susceptible to reliability issues. Some of the cables are the same kind that’s been used since the Victorian era, whilst others use old Cable TV (coax) networks, and your speed can vary depending on how far away from the street cabinet your home is.

Why you need Full Fibre

Full Fibre internet is capable of speeds far faster than what we need today. If you’re finding your regular broadband just isn’t keeping up with your household’s demand, Full Fibre is the way to go.

Here are some of the signs you need an upgrade to Full Fibre:

Pre-register for Boundless Networks’ Full Fibre internet, and claim your free activation here.

*Based on average Net Promoter Score data from Ofcom and SurveyMonkey data from September 2021.

Full Fibre broadband is coming to Harrogate, what does this mean?

This article is sponsored by CityFibre

Kim Johnston, Regional Partnership Manager for CityFibre in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon, answers some of the frequently asked questions regarding the full fibre roll out across the region.

What is CityFibre and what is it doing in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon?

CityFibre is on a mission to future-proof the UK’s connectivity from the ground up – literally! We’re building brand new digital communications infrastructure across the region, bringing the best available technology (full fibre) within reach of nearly every home and business.

This is a game-changer for the region as it will last for generations and help to drive the region’s growth now, enabling residents and businesses to benefit from ultra-fast internet speeds, while also unlocking a world of opportunities in the future.

This is all part of our up to £4 billion Gigabit City Investment Programme, which will see us bring full fibre within reach of up to 8 million homes and businesses across the UK by 2025.

What’s your role at CityFibre?

As a commercial lead in the region, I’m the main point of contact for local stakeholders and a key advocate of the many benefits that a full fibre network will bring to Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon.

Right at the heart of what we are trying to achieve are the local communities we will serve. It’s also very important in my role to ensure the build progresses smoothly and that residents and businesses are kept updated every step of the way.

Why is full fibre different to what I’ve got already? 

The difference between full fibre and ‘regular’ fibre is significant, and even if you think you have ‘fibre broadband’ today, the chances are there’s copper in there somewhere holding you back. In fact, if your router connects to a normal telephone socket, then that’s what you’ve got.

Around 80% of UK homes still connect to the internet via networks built for telephones – copper networks designed to carry sound, not data. Our networks are designed specifically for the digital age and take 100% fibre optic technology all the way from the home to the point of connection.

Full fibre enables Gigabit speeds, reliable services and bandwidth that can grow as we need it. No more buffering when you’re trying to watch the latest Netflix series, a stable, reliable connection on Zoom calls and the family able to play on their consoles and computers simultaneously without any groans of ‘the broadband is down’.

What does Gigabit mean?

A standard broadband connection has an average download speed of around 6Mbps and ‘superfast broadband’ averages speeds of around 30Mbps.

Internet service providers (ISPs) that are offering broadband connections on our full fibre network can deliver colossal ‘Gigabit speeds’ of up to 1,000Mbps for both download and upload.

That’s over 30 times faster than a superfast connection!

Where are you working at the moment?

We are currently working in Knaresborough and Harrogate, with our build starting in Ripon in 2022.

You’ll be able to spot our teams in action in Knaresborough and Pannal in Harrogate and, before too long, we’ll have reached nearly every home and business locally.

How will I know when it’s coming to my area?

We use digital advertising and door knocking, where applicable, to inform residents of our plans, and we will post a letter through your door before construction is due to start in your street to let you know we are coming.

Read More: 

What do the works entail?

Most of the new full fibre network will be laid underground. This requires construction crews to dig trenches which can cause some disruption. However, the teams work quickly and should only be working outside each individual property for a couple of days, during which you may be asked to move your car or manoeuvre around barriers.

In some locations, existing telephone poles will be used to feed the cable to properties overhead, resulting in minimised disruption.

If you have any issues regarding access to your property or any questions regarding the build, please do speak to the build teams on-site who will be able to answer any questions.

How do I get it?

CityFibre doesn’t provide the end service to the customer, we only lay the fibre cable. Our networks are open access; currently in the area residents can purchase full fibre connections on our network via TalkTalk. A number of other Internet Service Providers (ISPs) will be coming on board in the next month or two.

The easiest way to check if you can connect is to use the postcode checker on the CityFibre website. If it’s not available yet, you can register your interest and once works are complete, CityFibre will email you a list of available full fibre providers.

 

To be one of the first to get access to one of the fastest and most reliable broadband
services in the region, register your interest here!