A NORANDA home business owner frustrated at slow internet speeds has welcomed plans for the national broadband network (NBN) to be rolled out next year.
CTC Publishing owner Chris Hebbard (43) said he was excited to have access to the NBN after a long wait.
“It is good news and I will be watching very closely,” he said.
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NBN was established in 2009 to design, build and operate a nationwide broadband network, where eastern suburbs including Noranda would be included in future plans.
Mr Hebbard said inconsistent connection often disrupted his business.
“The internet affected my business because it drops in and out when I am emailing a client or on Skype with a client,” he said.
“My mother lives in a retirement village in Mandurah that has 250 residents and they have NBN but how many of those really need it… that is what concerns me.
“Some people who live on Benara Road and Tonkin Highway do not have access to broadband.”
Morley Labor candidate Amber-Jade Sanderson said Noranda residents had reported having very slow or no connection.
“Businesses find it difficult to function and residents are very frustrated, in this day and age the internet is an essential service,” she said.
“I spoke with one person who recently moved into the suburb who was told that they may not even get access to a port.”
Ms Sanderson said Bayswater, Bedford and Morley also had connection issues but not as severe as Noranda.
NBN WA corporate affairs manager Ebony Aitken said Noranda and Bayswater were in the future plans for the NBN network.
“Noranda and Bayswater will be receiving fibre to the node (FTTN) technology which is a way of providing very fast broadband by running fibre to a neighbourhood node and pillar and from there using the existing copper network to connect to the premises,” she said.
“Design is expected to commence next year.
“Construction of fibre to the node is expected to commence later this year in Ashfield, Bassendean, Beechboro, Caversham, Eden Hill, Guildford, Kiara, Lockridge, Morley, South Guildford to more than 21,000 premises.”
Ms Aitken said there were more than 298,000 homes that could connect to the network and more than 104,000 now activated as of July 2016.