Fast broadband will run through water pipes in South Yorkshire to speed up internet access

Fast broadband will run through water pipes in parts of South Yorkshire as part of plans to get better internet access to people quicker. 

New proposals to rollout broadband without digging up roads would see fibre-optic cables put in through 17km of live drinking water mains between Barnsley and Penistone.

The Fibre in Water scheme will be a greener, quicker and more cost-effective way of connecting fibre optic cables to homes, businesses and mobile masts, without the disruption caused by digging up roads and land.

It is part of a government technology trial to potentially connect up to 8,500 homes and businesses to faster broadband.

Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have more than 300,000 rural homes and businesses in line for an upgrade, including 56,800 premises in South Yorkshire. 

It also be used to set up 5G masts to bring fast broadband to hard-to-reach communities where wired solutions are too expensive to deliver commercially.

The trial, which is the its kind in the UK, will last for up to two years and, if successful, the it could be operational in networks from 2024 onwards. 

The technology will also pave the way to detect water leaks by putting fibre sensors in the pipes.

It will allow water companies to improve the speed and accuracy with which they can identify a leak and repair it.

Sam Bright, Innovation Programme Manager at Yorkshire Water said: "The technology for fibre in water has significantly progressed in recent years and this project will now enable us to fully develop its potential to help improve access to better broadband in hard-to-reach areas and further reduce leakage on our networks."