BT List 19 Final UK Exchanges for their GBP2.5bn Fibre Broadband Rollout

The Absolutely Final 19 Commercial Fibre Exchange Upgrades

ANFIELD – Merseyside
ASHFIELD – West Midlands
BEACON – West Midlands
BRADFORD – West Yorkshire
CANARY WHARF – Greater London
FARNWORTH – Greater Manchester
GOSCOTE – Leicestershire
HALESOWEN – West Midlands
HOLMEWOOD – Derbyshire
LEEDS – West Yorkshire
NETHERLEY – Merseyside
NEWCASTLE EAST – Tyne and Wear
NORTH SHIELDS – Tyne and Wear
OLD WHITTINGTON – Derbyshire
ORRELL – Greater Manchester
RIPPONDEN – West Yorkshire
RUBERY – West Midlands
STONE CROSS – West Midlands
WAKEFIELD – West Yorkshire

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2013/09/bt-list-19-final-uk-exchanges-commercial-fibre-broadband-rollout.html

BT Openreach Confirm UK ISP Pricing for FTTP on Demand Pilot Phase 2

Although those prices are very off putting (£500 install and £1000 for a 500m run of fibre) we could see some ISP willing to subsidise this heavily with lengthy contracts. With FTTC giving 80Mbps down / 20Mbps up, people will start thinking hard about if the upgrade is worth it. 

It's a clever move by OpenReach to save money upgrading the network. I don't ever remember NTL / Telewest or their predecessors doing any thing similar on a residential; service. Hopefully it will leads to a focus on keeping the network running smoothly with better service to ISP's.

The Pilot will take place in the following exchange areas:

High Wycombe
Bristol South
St Agnes Cornwall
Edinburgh Waverley
Basingstoke
Watford
Cardiff Central
Manchester Central

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2013/01/bt-openreach-confirm-uk-isp-pricing-for-fttp-on-demand-pilot-phase-2.html

Visit to a BT telephone exchange (CO)

These pictures are of the MDF (Main distribution frame) in a telephone exchange. This is basically where all the wiring from the telephony and data equipment eventually ends up before going out on your line to your home / business. 

These are the modern connectors: 

To give a scale of the size (varies in each exchange):

Old style connectors:

 Top of the frame:

I didn't include pictures of the DSLAM and MSAN's as these belonged to various providers. Essentially they will have cabinets with a HDF at the side.