Cut Off

Broadband On The Run
It is Government policy to bring fast broadband to the whole country but BT contractors working on this project managed to leave a large area of Weston, Bath, cut-off for 9 days without phone, fax or internet.

Catch 22
Several hundred households were isolated from a Saturday night after contractors installing new boxes for fast broadband broke the existing phone connection to the exchange. Attempts by residents to inform BT were stymied by the automated response system - which directed faults to be reported online via http://www.bt.co.uk/

Demarcation
By Tuesday BT Open Reach technicians were back at work. One team dug up the pavement again around the newly-installed boxes and then left an open hole. Another was working up phone masts. But neither team were working on the line break and both denied all knowledge of it.

Everything-Everywhere
At least mobile works. But, nice chap called James at BT complaints department says he must read all his check-list. This includes ceremony of unplugging and re-plugging our phones and committing to a £137 charge if engineer is called out and fault is in our home.

Is it me or James who is off line?

James - offline and not yet red

Poli Poli
Open Reach turn up again in street. Oh dear - unable to help as the cables are crushed within the pipes underneath where the trucks had been parked to take away the soil from the hole-diggers.

New Day
Contractors unload and stack pipes.

Another New Day
Long trench dug and pipes buried.

New Week
Phone engineers pull out and replace cables. Phone and internet connection jury rigged by 1-20pm.

Learning From Experience - Not
More contractors fill in holes. Truck parked on top of newly repaired pavement where pipe was crushed last week.

New Speeds
Massive 373 kpbs now available. Slightly less than before.

Compensation Offered
From day report “received” - Tuesday - to day “fixed” - about 58p per day for 7 days - less than cost of mobile essential calls made to landlines during 9 days cut off.

Open Breach of Health and Safety

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose - Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

Extract from TTTE included without permission of the current holders of the right to the work of late Rev W Awdry, illustrator C Reginald Dalby, and publishers Edmund Ward.