Broadband speed: UK's worst street 800 times slower than the best, survey finds

A Netflix film takes 65 hours to download in the slowest part of the country

A 45-minute HD TV show would require 24 hours to download for those living in Kingsclere, near York (PA)

The UK’s worst street for broadband speed is more than 800 times slower than the fastest, an annual survey has found.

Kingsclere in Huntington, York, was identified as having an average speed of 0.22 megabits per second (Mbps), 830 times slower than Darwin Street in Livingston, Scotland, where average speeds stand at 182.52Mbps, according to uSwitch.com.

The results mean that a two-hour HD film on Netflix would take more than 65 hours to download in Kingsclere, whereas it would be a small wait of fewer than five minutes for residents in Darwin Street.

Similarly, a 45-minute HD TV show would require 24 hours to download for those living in Kingsclere, while in Darwin Street it would take under two minutes.

A 16-minute drive away from Kingsclere and the average speed in York Road, Elvington, is 135.56Mbps.

Superfast fibre broadband is available on seven out of the 10 slowest streets, including Kingsclere, suggesting that consumers are being deprived of a better service by a lack of awareness, uSwitch.com said.

The research – based on 122,845 speed tests carried out on the price comparison service in the 12 months up to the end of September – found that a fifth (19 per cent) struggle with speeds of less than 10Mbps.

However, the number able to access faster speeds is growing, with 38 per cent receiving speeds of more than 30Mbps, an increase from less than a quarter (22 per cent) reported four years ago.

According to Ofcom, the average UK download speed is now 54.2Mbps.

“Our research reveals the digital divide running through Britain,” said Dani Warner, broadband expert at uSwitch.com.

“Residents living on one side of a city can be struggling with broadband as slow as molasses, while people just miles away are enjoying ultrafast speeds.

“Lack of awareness regarding superfast broadband is one of the biggest obstacles stopping people from getting faster download speeds.”

PA