No broadband in rural areas of Leitrim

Cllr Enda Stenson again raised the issue of broadband in rural areas at the latest Carrick-on-Shannon municipal district meeting. 

He said that people were "pulling their hair out" due to the lack of internet coverage in their areas and that schoolchildren doing their homework as well as those working from home were being affected by the delays in supplying fibre optic broadband to various areas. 

He stated that at a presentation two years ago to the full Council Meeting, he was told that certain houses on a particular line would be connected to broadband by 2024.

He said: "It’s my understanding this timescale is now 2026. In places the cable is within metres of houses, but cannot be connected, because somebody has not mapped the area. Can we obtain an update for households concerned about this?"

Addressing the meeting he said that part of the Eslin area is connected to the line in Mohill and "they brought fibre optic cable out from Mohill but there's another part of the area that has a line from Keshcarrigan" and said "it's not possible to connect those houses and we're being left in an impossible situation."

He stated: "We have no broadband; Without The Hive and the Enterprise Centre in Mohill, where I did a lot of meetings online through Covid, I would have got nothing done."

He said he had to leave his house and drive to Mohill in order to attend a meeting the previous evening because "we have nothing."

He said one residence is within 40 metres of the fibre optic cable but can't avail of the service. "Because the line is different, he's not getting connected. When your neighbour has it and you don't, it can be frustrating."

Cllr Sean McGowan supported the motion and said all councillors have received correspondence from people saying they are "frustrated and annoyed" that the project has been delayed until 2026. 

Cllr Des Guckian said the NBI "promises a lot and delivers very little on time and my only advice is to keep after them."

Cllr Thomas Mulligan said that he recalls a similar situation when fibre optic broadband was rolled out in Cloone. 

Cllr Paddy Farrell supported the motion saying he was in a similar situation. 

Cllr Stenson said that a lot of schoolwork is now done online and "we hear so much about the advantages of working from home" adding that broadband is now a vital service in today's modern home.  

A report by Economic Development said the property at Drumrahan, Eslinbridge, Co Leitrim as specified by Cllr Stenson is part of the intervention area of the NBI fibre rollout and the current timeline indicated on the NBI website for this location is now between January and December 2026.