AT&T announces largest FTTP build

AT&T today announced its largest fiber-to-the-premises network build-out to date, reaching a 20,000-home master-planned community near Houston, as part of Project Lightspeed.

The service provider said it agreed with General Growth Properties to build the FTTP network to Bridgeland, a 10,000-acre residential development now under construction north of Houston in Cypress, Texas. About 65,000 are expected to live in the new community, and AT&T will provide IP-based voice, data and video services under its U-verse Services brand.

The Bridgeland buildout is part of AT&T’s Smart Moves program, through which it is working with builders and developers to construct FTTP networks in new construction areas. According to AT&T, 270,000 homes are to be connected via fiber under Smart Moves contracts, with a total of 830,000 single family homes, apartments and multi-tenant buildings now under contract to receive a bundle of services through Smart Moves.

The Bridgeland buildout is scheduled to start this summer and continue until 2020. The planned community will have a large town center, along with recreational, educational and cultural facilities, and an extensive lake and trail system. The community is named for a series of distinctive bridges being designed to connect the different facilities together.