BT fibre broadband rollout hailed by Tendring residents

Residents in Tendring, Essex have praised BT's decision to bring fibre optic broadband to the district over the coming months.

The telecoms giant will boost download speeds at more than 4,000 properties served by the Manningtree exchange from 17Mbps to 40Mbps, with this headline figure set to double to 80Mbps next year, reports the East Anglian Daily Times.

Lee Lay-Flurrie, a Manningtree resident and town councillor, welcomed the development and said it is likely to be of particular benefit to local employers.

"It has to be better than it was before, particularly for businesses in the area as they really are suffering at the moment," she added.

Last month, BT announced more than 163,000 additional homes and businesses in Essex will gain access to its fibre optic broadband service by autumn 2012.

This development will take the number of properties in the county with super-fast broadband access to more than half a million, the company explained.