The city of Aachen is taking a big step in the expansion of fiber optics. It has applied for funding for this and will now receive 32 million euros. The funds come from the federal funding program under the Gigabit Directive 2.0 and are intended to help make areas of the city that have not yet been adequately supplied with fibre optics fit for the digital future.

"I am very pleased about this funding commitment. It is an important step for the digital development of our city," emphasizes Lord Mayor Dr. Michael Ziemons. "It shows that the federal, state and local authorities are working together to further expand the digital infrastructure and sustainably improve living and working conditions in our city."

The focus is on the so-called "gray spots": Addresses where the Internet connection is still comparatively slow today. Specifically, this concerns households, companies and facilities where downloads are currently less than 250 megabits per second. The aim of the funding program is to gradually provide these connections with high-performance fibre optics.

In particular, those addresses in Aachen that previously had no prospect of a fast Internet connection are to be connected to the fiber optic network. This will benefit private households, companies and public institutions in the long term.

Today, fast and stable internet is an important basis for working from home, digital learning, modern administrative services and the attractiveness of Aachen as a business location overall. "The funding is a strong signal for Aachen," says Head of Department Thomas Hissel. "We are thus creating the conditions to make Aachen even more future-proof overall - both for citizens and for business and administration."

The responsible department head, Dieter M. Begaß, explains: "Particularly peripheral locations in the city area, such as in Horbach or Schmithof, can now hope for an improved connection to the fiber optic network." He also emphasizes: "Overall, however, the following applies to all addresses in the city that have been identified as grey areas: the funding makes it possible to close the profitability gap and thus guarantee a comprehensive expansion."

The total costs of the planned fiber optic expansion amount to around 64.3 million euros. The federal government is covering 50 percent of this, i.e. around 32 million euros. In addition, the city of Aachen has applied for funding from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. If the decision is positive, the state could cover a further large part of the costs and thus significantly reduce the municipal contribution.

A decision by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia on the approval of further funding is expected in the course of the year. As soon as this is available, the City of Aachen will launch a Europe-wide tender to commission an experienced company with the implementation of the fiber optic expansion.

The official and symbolic handover of the provisional funding decision took place on January 14 in Berlin. For the first time, the event was held under the auspices of the newly founded Federal Ministry for Digital and State Modernization and was opened by Federal Minister Dr. Wildberger.

With the funding approval, the city of Aachen can now initiate the next planning steps and continue to prepare the way for a nationwide fiber optic expansion together with partners.