Glasgow one of worst in UK for broadband speeds

New research shows huge discrepancies between different areas of the UK, with homes just a couple of streets apart registering widely different broadband speeds. The research from uSwitch also shows areas in the city getting 85 per cent higher speeds than others.

Inverness also suffers from broadband cold spots, with some areas 65 per cent faster than those with slower speeds.

In the capital, residents can experience a gap of 53 per cent between the fastest and slowest speeds. In Aberdeen, the fastest areas were 51 per cent ahead of the lowest.

Researchers say the difference does not necessarily reflect how near the centre of town a person lives.

In Glasgow, people in the G22 district of Milton and Possilpark get average broadband speeds of 20.5Mbps. Just six miles away, people in Easterhouse, Provanhall and Rogerfield, in the G35 area, get an average of 2.98 Mbps.

Telecoms experts say the lack of superfast broadband is holding up online business in areas where connection speeds are slow.

The lowest speed researchers found was in Birmingham, where 2.2 Mbps was recorded. At this speed, it would take 11 hours to download a Blu-ray film.

According to the research, living in an upmarket area is no guarantee of better broadband speeds.

People in the Barbican in central London have one of the slowest broadband speeds in the capital – as little as 5.3 Mbps.

By contrast, those living in Greenwich have online surfing at speeds of up to 22.46 Mbps – a difference of 76 per cent.

Marie-Louise Abretti, tele-coms expert at uSwitch.com, said: “Despite the government’s intense focus on superfast speeds, this data reveals massive inconsistencies, with speeds fluctuating dramatically between areas just a few miles apart.

“Although a recent Ofcom report revealed that the UK’s average broadband speed has increased by a third in the last year, our data suggests that this isn’t the whole picture.

“If you’re still stuck suffering from slow or inconsistent speeds, check to see what service you could be getting with another provider. Signing up to a fibre service is a surefire way of speeding up your broadband – and almost two-thirds of the country now has this option. However, many consumers either don’t know about it or are put off by the price. It may cost you more, but could be worth it, especially as several providers have great introductory offers at the  moment.”

An Ofcom spokesperson said as well as increasing numbers of people switching to superfast services, standard broadband speeds were getting faster. They added: “Ofcom’s research shows that the average residential broadband speed has more than trebled in the last four years which has benefited consumers.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Increasing access to broadband is a key  priority area, and we are currently progressing plans to develop a world-class digital infrastructure by 2020.”