The role of digital for our city region’s success can’t be downplayed.
A key manifesto pledge of Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram was a commitment to drive economic growth and better equip the businesses of the Liverpool City Region.
Set against a backdrop of the phasing out of traditional copper connectivity, the transformation of the region’s digital infrastructure was key.
What is LCR Connect?
LCR Connect is a new network for the city region, offering an alternative to traditional providers.
It’s an open wholesale network that can be accessed by local internet service providers and from January 2022, ultrafast full fibre will be available to businesses across the city region.
The investment into LCR Connect has been made to support businesses in the region compete regionally, nationally and globally. The infrastructure underpins the technologies modern businesses rely on, it enables organisations to innovate, and it creates jobs and growth, helping our city region attract investment.
How is the network being built?
The 212km fibre is being laid to connect the city region into national and international fibre connectivity. Being built in stages, the entire network has been designed to offer a robust and future proofed infrastructure.
It will scale to absorb the growing need for bandwidth, starting with the region’s business and public sector community.
Our first sections will go live at the end of January 2022, with a number of other sections lighting up thereafter.
How do I connect?
The good news is, we’re ready to talk to you now. We are laying fibre across all six local authorities of the city region with the first live areas announced. The news section of our website is the place to find that information.
If your area isn’t listed, we have interim solutions available that allow you to access ultrafast connectivity. Just go to our website and fill out your details. Depending on your requirement, we will ask a trusted internet services connectivity partner to call you to talk you through the process and the products available.
We work with 200 service partners – this gives you choice. They bring sector specialism and the kind of exceptional customer service which SMEs excel at.
We aren’t like the bigger, more traditional broadband providers. That means we can offer greater commercial flexibility, faster installations, bespoke solutions, and an efficient end to end service. Typically, it takes us days to connect a service, not months.