The residents of a caravan camp on the Rielseheideweg in Geldrop-Mierlo have been waiting for a fast fiber optic connection for more than six months. She was promised this, but KPN has not heard from them anymore and is unreachable for both residents and the municipality: “Apparently this project is not important enough for KPN”.
Optical fiber in remote areas is often a difficult story. This is because the construction is expensive and there are few people who can pay for the costs. Nevertheless, the municipality of Geldrop-Mierlo wanted a small caravan camp to get fiber optics. That turned out to be easier said than done.
Normally, the installation of a new fiber optic cable is paid for by the people who will use it: the costs are settled with the subscription costs. Because that was not an option at the remote caravan camp on Rielseheideweg, the municipality decided to contribute. Thanks to a contribution of 23,450 euros and money from housing company Wooninc, KPN was willing to lay the cables. Good news for residents, who have already canceled their old internet subscription.
“The Internet of the Year Zero.”
We are now half a year later and there is still no fiber optic connection. Residents say that a contractor has been to the camp, but that he quickly left.
“We still have internet via the telephone line. That’s something from the year zero, isn’t it?” said one of them. “We have already signed, so we cannot apply for anything else now,” adds another.
What exactly went wrong here? The municipality is in the dark: “We no longer hear anything from KPN. We have even contacted the director, but we have not received any response. It is very frustrating,” said a spokesman.
Breedband Regio Eindhoven (BRE) acted as a mediator between KPN and the municipality, but they also failed to get hold of the telecom company. “We keep emailing and calling, but you can’t get through,” says Ralph Smallegange of BRE.
“The construction is three times as expensive.”
Still, he has a suspicion of what is going on. There are a number of old trees near the camp. Therefore, the contractor was not allowed to dig, but had to drill. That’s more expensive. “But KPN has never confirmed that. Maybe Omroep Brabant will get an answer,” says Smallegange.
That answer came. KPN says that the old trees are indeed the problem. That makes the construction three times as expensive. The company wants to consult with the municipality to find a solution together, but that has not yet taken place.
The municipality is ‘not amused’ about the explanation: “We find it strange and we are disappointed. Apparently this project is not important enough for KPN. We want to be a reliable government and we assume that KPN wants to be a reliable partner.” KPN denies that the camp is not a priority. Why it’s taking so long to be ‘sorted out’.
Yet there may still be hope. The municipality indicates that the rules for the construction should not come as a surprise to the contractor. These rules are not new. The additional costs need not be a problem for the municipality either. So maybe they’re pulling their wallets again: “It’s not about those extra costs for us, they’re up to that point. What matters to us is that we don’t hear anything from KPN at all.”
Omroep Brabant is investigating (the installation of) fiber in our province. Do you want to comment or do you have a tip? Email our research editorial.