Mobile Black Spot Program Round 8—Project Noticeboard

Constituent who lives at 6 Glasford Crescent, Kioloa and has quite a lot of issues with reception. They need to walk around the house trying to find the best spot to get a few bars. The service has improved a little since putting on the internet. Telstra advised them to turn on WiFi calling which has helped.

They advise there are quite a few elderly people around them and one gentleman in particular needs to come over and use my WiFi to get in touch with people. This isn't very safe. Holiday season is the worst time for lack of reception. The 2019/20 bushfires were so bad for mobile reception.

Telstra mobile reception along the Princes Highway (Batemans Bay – Mogo) is nearly non-existent, affecting Eurobodalla Botanic Garden (70,000+ visitors), Mogo Mountain Bike Trail, Deep Creek Dam, and essential travel routes.

Safety risk: No service for emergencies or hospital transfers. Business and tourism loss: Visitors struggle with navigation, payments, and communication.

Proposal: Improve Telstra infrastructure to enhance safety, connectivity, and support local businesses and tourism.

Worsening coverage post-Kioloa 5G upgrade, with devices preferring weak 5G over stronger 4G, leading to more black spots. Poor reception along Bawley Point Rd (4km black spot) and Murramarang Drive, where dropped calls are now common. Severe congestion during holiday periods, making mobile service unreliable in emergencies, including bushfires. New infrastructure is required to improve coverage, reliability, and emergency preparedness in Bawley Point.

Rugby is located on the main road between Boorowa and Crookwell. This road is a major thoroughfare linking rural towns. This proposal is supported by the local RFS and first responders who have had to leave emergency situations to obtain mobile service to call for assistance. The township of Rugby has no mobile phone reception and being a rural township has had multiple bushfires impact the region.

There are many communities and roads in the New England and Upper Hunter regions, including these locations in the Muswellbrook Shire Council area, where mobile phone coverage is limited, problematic or non-existent, creating major issues for residents and businesses, particularly during times of emergency. These regions are susceptible to natural disasters, including bushfires and floods, and mobile communications are of critical importance during these events.

I think Berry town would be a perfect location to benefit from this scheme.

I am frequently advised how poor the reception is in Berry. It is a decent sized town with many locals and tourists frequently visiting, but often has no reception. Many business owners complain about the issue, which causes challenges for paying by card, looking up maps and using QR menus etc.

I think it would make a big difference to peoples experience of visiting Berry if there was better reception.

There are many communities and roads in the New England and Upper Hunter regions, including these locations in the Glen Innes Severn Council area, where mobile phone coverage is limited, problematic or non-existent, creating major issues for residents and businesses, particularly during times of emergency. These regions are susceptible to natural disasters, including bushfires and floods, and mobile communications are of critical importance during these events.

Termeil, a small village in the Shoalhaven lacks any telecommunications coverage.

Residents in the area are forced to rely on their home internet service to make calls and text messages and lose connection as soon as they leave their home.

Residents are concerned for their safety and the safety of loved ones in the event that a fire or extreme weather event roles through, as they may lose outside connection.

The coverage in the Nelligen area is unsatisfactory. I am told there is currently 1 tower that cannot cope when there is a holiday in the area eg xmas/easter/long weekend and the population of this area swells and the tower cannot cope with the additional usage. This is a situation that needs rectifying especially with regard to the Kings Highway and the incidents that occur on the Clyde Mountain where there is no phone coverage. This black spot for phone coverage is a real concern.

Optus users experience daily black spots along Forrest Road (between the highway and Callala Beach). No service in this area poses a serious safety risk, particularly for those traveling alone at night. This results in inability to call for help in emergencies and increased risk for night-time commuters. Mobile coverage should be improved along Forrest Road by upgrading existing infrastructure or installing new towers to enhance safety and connectivity.

Bylong Valley Way is firstly a key gateway between the Central West and Upper Hunter, serving residents, emergency services, council outdoor staff, other workers visiting the area, and travellers. Baerami also has a Rural Fire Service Shed and a Community Hall. The Baerami Valley is characterised by farm and tourism businesses which involves the movement of visitors unfamiliar with the area and vehicles moving livestock and farm supplies such as hay and fodder. The poor reception in these areas creates safety risks and disrupts communication. This nomination is supported by feedback from local residents and Council’s Operational Teams.

Splitters Creek - patchy/no 4G coverage, high fire risk - supported by RFS and Telstra

Corowa South - capacity, flood risk - supported by Corowa Golf & Race Clubs and Federation Council 

Goombargana/Alma Park - capacity, fire/storm risk - supported by Greater Hume and Lockhart Shire Councils 

Wymah/Talgarno - patchy/no coverage, flood/fire risk, supported by Greater Hume & Towong Shire Councils

Pretty Pine - poor coverage, fire/storm risk, supported by Edward River Council and Telstra 

Barham East - poor coverage, flood/fire risk, supported by Murray River Council and NSWTA

Worrigee is densely populated. Constituents advise in order to make a mobile call, they often have to step outside their home. Calls often break up. Calls often drop out totally.

Some homes back onto the Worrigee Nature Reserve. This is clearly a danger point there was a bush fire. Without reliable mobile phone coverage, they would have no way to get help.

Currabubula suffers from poor mobile phone coverage, limiting the capacity of businesses to operate in an increasingly digital world. 

Currabubula is on the foot of a heavily vegetated mountain which is a high fire hazard. In 2023 a bushfire came within a kilometre of the town. 

Mobile coverage is essential to ensure public safety, and business prosperity.

Willow Tree suffers from poor mobile phone coverage, limiting the capacity of businesses to operate in an increasingly digital world. 

The Willow Tree Public School is at risk of isolation through flooding, so mobile coverage is essential to ensure quick communication.

Black Spot Frequency: Every trip and at home in Ulladulla. Worst Coverage Areas: ~5 km outside of towns along the South Coast.

Impact: Mobile coverage has rapidly deteriorated, making it increasingly difficult to manage a mobile business.

Proposal is to invest in infrastructure upgrades to improve mobile coverage along key regional routes and towns to support businesses and residents.

This rural area, bordering state forest and used for broadacre cropping, experiences poor reception impacting residents, especially during emergencies. Fire events in 2022, 2023 highlight the critical need for communication; residents were unable to contact each other or emergency services.

Emergency alerts were sent to residents and were unreliable whether they were received or not. Improved coverage would also benefit traffic on the Cunningham (Annual Average Daily Traffic of 1118 vehicles) and Gore Highways (AADT of 1615 vehicles). Existing towers to the east and south, and potentially local forestry infrastructure (fire towers), could be used.

The lack of mobile phone coverage at Teewah Beach has been raised as a serious safety issue given there are an estimated 200,000 visitors each year. Much of Teewah Beach is a designated road. The area is isolated and popular with recreational fishers and campers. There have been numerous incidents of vehicle rollovers, drownings, and other tragedies where emergency services were unable to be contacted due to lack of mobile phone service.

The proposal is supported by the Cooloola Coast Chamber of Commerce, Gympie Regional Council, Noosa Shire Council, and regional emergency services.

Residents and local farmers experience extreme difficulty in taking calls, sending messages and accessing internet services.

In an event of a natural disaster this could result in lack of access to information and placing additional pressure on emergency services.

Telecommunications is extremely vital in ensuring road users can contact emergency services in the event of an accident on the notoriously dangerous Bruce Highway.

It is also known that terrain impacts signal from towers and on large agricultural properties, loss of telecommunications hinders their productivity and knowing if they are hurt in the paddock, they can call for help.

This area experiences significant riverine flooding (14 moderate-high flood levels since 2000) posing a serious threat to safety. Kildonan Road is a dedicated tourist route serving three reserves popular for camping.

Reliable connectivity is crucial for warning campers of impending flood rises, mitigating risk and enabling timely evacuations. The road has eight steep creek crossings that become impassable during floods, frequently stranding motorists.

Improved coverage allow stranded individuals to call for assistance. Furthermore, improved coverage would benefit surrounding intensive agricultural area and the nearby Toomelah Aboriginal Settlement.