Wanganui's connection to the ultra fast broadband network has been relatively slow but is expected to grow rapidly in the coming year.
As at June 30, 76 per cent of the UFB network in the town had been completed by Ultra Fast Fibre. The network is scheduled to be completed by the middle of next year, making Wanganui one of the first towns in the country to be fully UFB capable.
Whangarei became the first when its network was completed this year. Of the 76 per cent of Wanganui properties with UFB available, only 2.4 per cent had connected by July.
UFF marketing manager Brett Morris said Wanganui was in line with national statistics. Larger cities had higher uptake than the smaller ones. "I put this down to a larger selection of broadband retailers being active in the larger cities," Mr Morris said. He said broadband retailers had been slow off the mark offering the service in Wanganui but expected it to pick up quickly in the coming months.
Once the network was completed next year, retailers would be better able to market services because the whole town would be able to be connected and customers would not have to first check if their property sat on the network.