SHOPPERS can now get 30 minutes’ free internet access in Colchester town centre.

Colchester Council signed a deal, last May, with media services company Arqiva to create a pay-as-you-go network called @ColchesterWiFi.

The scheme was due to go live last autumn but a backlog of projects for Arqiva led to the delay. It has now finally gone live.

Arqiva has placed antennae on 23 of the council’s CCTV cameras to create the network and will pay the council a portion of the revenue in return.

Paul Smith, councillor responsible for business, said: “This is a significant step forward for digital services in Colchester.

“Whether you are waiting for a bus, having a coffee, or on the move, you can take advantage of this excellent service for free.

“Free, fast access to Visit Colchester will be a real benefit to visitors, helping them discover all the local attractions the town has to offer.”

Users have to register to get 30 minutes’ free access a day, and they will be charged for any extra time they use.

However, they be able to access Colchester Council’s online services, including the Visit Colchester website, and Universal Jobmatch for free at all times.

David Burch, policy director at Essex Chambers of Commerce, praised the council for the initiative.

He said: “The council is undertaking quite a bit of work to improve the town centre and attract more people into the centre and come and support local stores.

“People are generally using the internet far more now than before and one of the problems faced is the lack of connectivity to the internet, so anything that is done to boost that by means of installing wifi is good.

“We all go to hotels or meeting venues and get really frustrated when we cannot access wifi systems.

“Hopefully it will benefit businesses in the town and benefit visitors and encourage people to come and shop here.”