BT to underpin Westminster's Wi-Fi ambitions

BT has signed up to become network infrastructure provider for Westminster City Council's ambitious Wireless City Project which will position the authority and its services at the vanguard of Wi-Fi technology implementations.

From widespread public Wi-Fi coverage provided by BT Openzone to increased flexibility brought to the implementation of connected council services, such as smarter CCTV monitoring, the project promises to revamp the way the council works and the way it interacts with the public.

Council workers also stand to benefit from the scheme with greater provisioning for remote working, meaning less time spent travelling between sites and a greater streamlining of data access and management. Staff who need to be out and about, such as environmental health inspectors and the dreaded traffic wardens will be able to remotely access all necessary systems and online services via PDAs.

Clive Ansell, BT London regional director, said: "The scale of this project is unprecedented both in terms of its size and in terms of the area's strategic importance."

Another initiative which BT will implement includes Microconnect - a system which will increase mobile phone coverage on an operator-agnostic level. This will improve coverage for increasingly popular 3G services as well as limit the impact for more unsightly masts on the Westminster landscape.

Simon Milton, leader of Westminster City Council said the project which was first announced in April 2004 will make Westminster "a world leader for technology and innovation".