Scotland's most remote communities could soon gain access to high-speed broadband, according to researchers working on an internet connectivity program.

The Tegola Project, run jointly by the University of Edinburgh and the University of the Highlands and Islands, was launched in Autumn 2007 using small communities in areas of the Scottish Highlands, including Loch Hourn and Sleet.

Professor Peter Buneman of the School of Informatics at the University of Edinburgh said: “Access to the internet is fast becoming a basic utility in cities, but in rural areas it is often unavailable. People living remotely need web access to run businesses, use mail order, to access educational support, or to contact friends and family.”

The project was launched due to the high number of Scottish residents—as many as 20 per cent—unable to reach a broadband speed of 2Mbps, which is widely accepted as the minimum for effective use of the internet. This led the researchers to explore alternative methods of broadband distribution, such as terrestrial wireless.

"Broadband speed is doubly important in remote areas where radio, TV and telephones may not work well. Our study shows how high-speed access can be made available to remote areas," said Professor Buneman.

The 35-45 households within the testbed are now benefitting from high-speed broadband which is capable of reaching up to 25Mbps using commodity wireless hardware.

Due to the success of the project, researchers are now hoping to extend it to other rural communities across Scotland who are too far from a telephone exchange to receive high speed broadband.

As the British government has acknowledged in the recently published 'Digital Britain' report, a high speed connection to the internet is rapidly becoming essential for life in the 21st century.

Rural communities affected by the lack of a good quality connection require a faster connection for a variety of reasons. Radio and mobile coverage was poor or non-existent in some parts of the test area, making people more reliant on internet radio and telephony. Additionally, many rural communities in the testbed were situated up to an hour away by road from a hospital, therefore making their need for services such as tele-medicine and broadband-enabled ambulances even greater.

Commercial distribution in the areas affected is often not possible, as it can be incredibly expensive to install and maintain equipment within such remote areas. However, due to the decrease in the cost of wireless technology, the aim of the project is economically possible.

The researchers found that community-assisted deployment is much more likely to be successful, as the communities can not only help to install and maintain masts in order to save on expenses, but can also help gain permission for mast sites.