THREE more North Yorkshire now have free public access Wi-fi thanks to a partnership between the county council and NYnet, its broadbands company.

Catterick, Tadcaster and Thirsk are the latest areas in a scheme involving 18 market towns, with the first 12 receiving their Wi-Fi last year and the service now boasting 6,000 unique users a week.

County Councillor Don Mackenzie, Executive Member for Access, said: “We begin 2022 with optimism; the coronavirus restrictions around working from home have relaxed so we are hoping to see an increased footfall in our town centres. We know that the offer of free Wi-Fi in public spaces is drawing people into our town centres to both work and visit.

“Anybody visiting these three areas will now benefit from savings to their mobile data plans by accessing the internet for free with no time restrictions. We look forward to the further roll-out of the scheme which represents the latest investment to improve North Yorkshire’s digital infrastructure.”

Free public access Wi-Fi offers opportunities for people with limited or no broadband to access vital local council, government and health services and take part in the digital economy.

The roll-out has been helped by £3.6m awarded by the York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership as part of its allocation from the government’s Getting Building Fund.

David Dickson, Chair of the York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership Infrastructure & Joint Assets Board, said: “Improved digital connectivity is vital for the region and will help us achieve ambitions of being a greener, fairer and stronger economy. It’s great to see the continued progress of this programme of work.”