Barnatra broadband

Broadband comes to Barnatra

Anton McNulty

THERE was good news for businesses and households living in Barnatra in north Mayo and for Knock Airport after telecommunications company eircom announced that it has broadband-enabled the telephone exchanges serving the two communities.
The enabling of the exchanges is part of eircom’s nationwide broadband roll-out programme, which will see over 400 exchanges across Ireland including a further 16 exchanges in Mayo. The availability of broadband in rural Mayo has become a major bone of contention among many businesses who say that their businesses are being stifled because there is no broadband connection in their area.
A spokesperson for Ireland West Airport Knock told The Mayo News that the airport had its own broadband service for a number of years and provides a wi-fi service for passengers. Eircom have been accused by many quarters of neglecting the roll-out of broadband in rural areas, but Michael Kennedy, the Managing Director of eircom, said the enablement of these exchanges shows they are delivering on their commitments.
“Eircom is delighted to announce the roll-out of broadband to Barnatra and Knock Airport in Mayo. Eircom is 100 per cent committed to making broadband available to as many parts of the country as we can. The enablement of this exchange and the planned enablement of an additional 16 exchanges across Mayo demonstrates we are delivering on our commitments,” he said.
The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Éamon Ryan, recently announced that the Government is to invest €435 million to address the digital divide and ensure there is universal access to broadband in Ireland by 2010. The Minister also said that by 2012, broadband speeds in Ireland would equal or exceed those in comparable EU regions. It was something that the Government were fully committed to and they would not be deflected by anything in their determination to achieve their objective.