By JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
GEELONG’S spread of new housing estates has helped drive early availability of the National Broadband Network to local homes, according to external affairs manager Trent Williams.
Mr Williams said the NBN charter provided that new estates of more than 100 premises would be connected first.
Geelong’s initial NBN connections were made to 174 homes at Armstrong Creek estate Waralilly this week, offering “super-fast” broadband.
Mr Williams said NBN Co installed a transit line to Geelong to service the new estates coming online after optic fibre cabling was laid in the estate as it was developed.
The wider Geelong rollout begins in June, connecting 12,000 homes in 18 suburbs from Bell Post Hill to East Geelong, including the central city s area.
Mr Williams said connecting homes usually took 18 months after the start of construction, with an estimated 29,000 connected by mid-2015.
“The NBN will attract greater growth to the area for business as well as lifestyle as Geelong receives access to internet speeds better than the metro areas,” he said.
“We’re keen to get a group of business people together to establish a forum or expo to organise an event that showcases the NBN and its capabilities.”
Mr Williams said Geelong was free of any skills-related construction delays but the project still offered job opportunities.
“Anyone keen on getting into the telecommunications industry should contact the local TAFE because we’re looking across the country for people to work on the NBN over the next eight years.”
Corangamite MP Darren Cheeseman said the NBN offered benefits for education, health care and local businesses.
“The NBN is affordable for people in the Waralilly estate. It’s available for prices that are similar or less than what people are paying now on the ageing copper network, with the NBN providing a superior, modern service.”
Council’s knowledge economy portfolio holder, Rod Macdonald, said the connections were the start of Geelong becoming a “smart city” with a competitive advantage.
