Their roadworks may have been frustrating motorists for more than a year - but some households in Ipswich can now enjoy extra-fast broadband speeds thanks to the new network being installed by CityFibre.

Broadband provider Zen Internet is starting to roll-out gigabit-speed broadband in the town - the third area of the country, after Newcastle and West Sussex, to get it.

The "900-plus" service is deployed through CityFibre’s national open access networks.

Zen says that this speed can transform the way people use broadband - people can stream television services like Netflix or Disney+ at full speed and watch four shows simultaneously on 4k resolution.

CityFibre started installing the new full-fibre broadband network early last year in the north west of the town, in the Norwich Road area, at the start of last year - and the first properties have now been fully plugged into the new network in that part of the town.

Their reach is now extending to other parts of Ipswich and the fibre cables should all be installed by the end of next year allowing all homes in the town to have access to ultra-fast broadband.

Paul Stobart, CEO, Zen Internet, said: “Our reliance on the internet for work, entertainment, communication and much more besides has increased out of all recognition during Covid.

"Consumers and businesses deserve access to really fast, high quality broadband and that is what we intend to deliver to the people of Ipswich through our strategic partnership with CityFibre.”

Ipswich Star: Charles Kitchin of CityFibre.Charles Kitchin of CityFibre. (Image: Archant)

Charles Kitchin, CityFibre’s City manager for Ipswich, added: “We started the build in Ipswich in February 2020 and couldn’t be more excited to already have award-winning provider Zen rolling out the first services just one year later.

"The unique synchronous connectivity offers an incredible 900Mbps of bandwidth when both downloading and uploading – a game changer for the people of Ipswich when it comes to digital capabilities, transforming it to a powerful Gigabit City.”