SWINDON residents will lead the way as they test out a new form of ultra-fast broadband technology.

The town’s householders will be among the first in the UK to benefit from a new service being developed by Openreach, BT’s internet arm.

The company recently announced Swindon as a pilot location for the project, known as G.fast.

The ultrafast connection can provide download speeds of up to 330mbps – more than 10 times the UK national average.

Openreach plans to make G.fast available to more than 10 million homes by the end of 2020, and the announcement that Swindon’s residents will get an early look has been given a warm welcome.

David Renard, leader of Swindon Borough Council, said: “I am delighted that Swindon has been chosen as one of the first pilots across the UK for Openreach’s new ultrafast broadband.

“Having fast, reliable broadband connectivity is critical for the way our businesses and residents work, communicate, shop and learn.

“Swindon’s ambition is to provide access for all businesses and residents to the highest speeds possible and we can now look forward to many more premises in Swindon being able to access broadband through this exciting G.fast technology.”

BT is yet to release details of which areas of the town will be part of the trial but they have said that “thousands of premises in Swindon” will be given access during 2017.

Clive Selley, Openreach’s CEO, said: “The UK already leads the way when it comes to superfast broadband.

“More than nine out of ten homes and businesses already have access to superfast speeds with another 20,000 more premises being enabled each week, and we’re working hard to reach the rest, as well as starting to roll out ultrafast speeds.

“I’m pleased that Swindon will be one of the first locations to get ultrafast speeds using G.fast technology. It’s a technology we’ve chosen because it enables us to get an affordable ultrafast service to as many people as possible in the fastest possible time.”

The news of BT’s decision represents a positive start to 2017 after a year of challenges around internet provision in Swindon.

The council-backed Superfast Swindon project has struggled to achieve the coverage that was originally intended after planning battles meant their North Swindon mast sites were rejected on two occasions.

The project has been slightly better received in previously hard-to-reach rural areas but even then the level of sign-ups to date is believed to be in the region of 300 homes.

Virgin Media seized the opportunity to announce a roll out in North Swindon, mostly set for 2017.

But it looks like their arrival may be hampered by delays in the road adoption process. In the region of 80 roads in North Swindon have not yet been adopted and the complications around doing so mean that work to lay broadband cabling may have to wait.