The Fast and the Furious 2

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04 March 2016 | Updated 01 January 1970

People in Rickmansworth are enjoying the fastest broadband speeds in the country, according to their average speed test data.

Cable.co.uk has analysed more than 50,000 speed tests submitted over the past 12 months to find out where the fastest and slowest broadband is in the UK.

And while Ofcom suggests the average UK download speed is 22.8Mbps, people in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire get more than three times that, with average downloads of 77.17Mbps.

The data is not broken down by provider but is matched to the exchange the connection uses and analysis has shown that the fastest average speed is at the Rickmansworth exchange.

The findings come just a week after research revealed that Three Rivers in Hertfordshire – home to Rickmansworth – is the district with the widest gulf between rising property values and earnings.

Research from Halifax showed that in the UK one in four homes are earning more than their owners, with an increase in the number of homes outpacing their owners’ earnings.

Three Rivers was the district with the widest gulf between rising property values, with house prices increasing by an average of £147,990 over the last two years, beating average take-home earnings in the area by £97,992.

Property expert Henry Pryor said: "Broadband is no longer a luxury. Fast broadband is no longer just a plus. Buyers want the best e-code and not just the best postcode and they may pay a premium for it where it’s available and may avoid an area completely if it’s not."

The government is aiming to provide access to superfast broadband to 95% of the country by 2017, and has pledged to introduce a ‘universal service obligation’ – the minimum speed people can get – of 10Mbps by 2020.

But earlier this week business leaders accused the government of 'a poverty of ambition'.

The Institute of Directors said despite having the leading internet economy in the G20, download speeds in the UK are 'mediocre' and fibre coverage is 'woeful'.

It said the target for broadband speeds should be 1,000 times higher than the current 10Mbps by 2020 – 10Gbps by 2030.

Miserden has slowest broadband in UK

The Gloucestershire village of Miserden is at risk of becoming a digital ghost town, says cable.co.uk as it has the UK's slowest average broadband speed.

Download speeds in Miserden averaged 1.3Mbps, meaning it could take 119 hours to download the Bond film Spectre in HD.

Worse than Everest

Cable.co.uk is a consumer comparison site. it released a list of the slowest and fastest speeds recorded by householders themselves, under their existing broadband deals.

Miserden has slower broadband than Mount Everest base camp. Dan Howdle, of Cable.co.uk said: "Digital black holes risk economic decline as businesses needed an online presence. These often beautiful, scenic locations will become ghost towns."

Picture: How long would it take to download this pic if you lived in Miserden.

Article written by Brian Shillibeer | Published 04 March 2016

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