KCom is to make the historic move across the Humber, with 10,000 homes to benefit from the company’s full fibre broadband in Barton and Brigg.
The Hull telecoms giant revealed it was heading to the South Bank in January, and now that phase of a £100 million expansion programme is set to get underway.
It will be the first time households have been served outside the traditional East Yorkshire heartland in the company’s 116-year history - and will see cable taken across the Humber Bridge.
KCom chief executive Dale Raneberg said: “I’m delighted to announce that the next phase of our ambitious expansion plan will bring the benefits of full fibre broadband to North Lincolnshire homes for the very first time.
“As a local business with deep roots in the region, reaching the short distance across the Humber was an obvious choice for KCom when we were looking for areas to expand our award-winning network.”
New destinations this year have included Driffield, Market Weighton, Pocklington, Howden, Goole, Howden and Hornsea, with many enjoying gigaspeed connections.
As well as connecting the two market towns, KCom has also signalled its willingness to build cutting edge full fibre infrastructure in smaller communities such as Barrow and Goxhill if there is demonstrable demand.
Further destinations will be revealed later this year.
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Mr Raneberg said: “We’ve had an excellent response from the communities where we’re providing our services for the first time, showing recognition and support for us as a truly local business, and demand for the high-quality broadband we provide.
“As many more people are working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic, fast, reliable broadband has moved quickly from being an optional extra to an essential utility enabling people to get on with their daily lives. By scaling up capacity to bring our full fibre to these new areas we’ll be creating new opportunities and making life easier for thousands of people.
“Our investment in Fibre To the Premises (FTTP) infrastructure is not just making life easier with faster download speeds for people surfing and streaming at home – it is also helping to create growth and innovation and will play a massive role in underpinning the region’s economic recovery after Covid-19.”
Despite challenging circumstances, the key worker engineers from KCom have continued building critical network capacity throughout the coronavirus pandemic, helping to connect residents, local authorities and companies.
It is recognised as playing a key role in adding value to the Humber, with tech firms embracing the award-winning service that puts Hull top of connectivity measures.
Independent research has found the network has added more than £469 million to the value of the economy in recent years.