Moss Vale resident Luke Hannon has waited more than six months for the National Broadband Network (NBN), and he’s still waiting.
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Mr Hannon called his service provider in January when his street became NBN ready.
He was told by the provider that he was scheduled to be connected a fortnight later, but had problems from the outset. “They signed me up for an address in New Berrima,” he said.
Mr Hannon also had difficulties with his fibre to the node connections, which resulted in several visits and 20 hours on the phone to his provider and the NBN Co.
He has resorted to using mobile data in the interim, for his wife and three children. Such experiences have left several residents with concerns.
Bowral resident David Imerman said he was not interested in switching to the NBN until it was necessary.
“I’m going to wait until there’s nothing on the ADSL line,” Mr Imerman said.
“The price isn’t there at the moment. I think the more companies that flood the market, the better.”
Mr Imerman said he expected issues such as connectivity and speed to improve with time. “It’s just like anything new, there’s always teething problems,” he said.
However, at the other end of the spectrum, Highlands resident Ella Dodds-Mah said there was no delay with her NBN connection from her service provider.
"We were connected as soon as the service was available, before many of our friends,” she said. “As an existing customer, we were contacted and asked if we would like to join NBN.”
Ms Dodds-Mah said she was satisfied with the service she received from her provider. Her connection was switched on within a week. “They provided excellent support in assisting us. Since then, we have had amazing, fast internet connection.”
NBN Co spokeswoman Marcela Balart said the rollout of the network in the Southern Highlands was in its final stages.
“Our customer surveys show that the majority of people connected to services over the NBN network are satisfied and enjoying the benefits,” she said.
More than 16,900 premises, including parts of Moss Vale, Burradoo, Berrima, Bowral, Bundanoon and Mittagong can currently connect to the network.
Works are underway to connect the remaining 4,100 premises, and customers will be able to order a service over the NBN network over the next 12 months.