TELSTRA, along with Federal and State government representatives gathered at Kulin to celebrate and acknowledge the importance of new mobile base stations at Kulin West, Bulyee and Wogerlin Hill last week.
Telstra area general Manager Boyd Brown said residents, businesses and visitors to these towns, located in the eastern Wheatbelt, were now benefitting from new and improved mobile coverage as Telstra’s rollout of the Federal government’s Mobile Black Spot Program picks up speed.
Mr Brown said the new base stations were among 189 mobile coverage black spots across regional and rural WA benefitting from expanded 3G/4G mobile coverage.
“A new mobile base station is a game-changer in supporting the local residents, farmers and businesses around Kulin West, Wogerlin Hill and Bulyee,” Mr Brown said.
“The growing use of mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets is changing the way we live and we’re acutely aware of the challenges facing communities living with limited access to a mobile network.”
Mr Brown said the new sites were equipped with 3G and a 4GX service which provided a faster mobile network with more consistent data speeds.
He said the Mobile Black Spot Program encouraged carriers to build mobile infrastructure in remote areas which all carriers could access if they choose.
“This is a great outcome for people living and working in these regional communities,” Mr Brown said.
“The eastern Wheatbelt is a major agricultural region and we’re proud to be part of this important initiative which is connecting so many more rural communities in this dynamic area.”
Telstra has won an additional 89 sites in the latest Priority Locations round of the Mobile Black Spot program.
This boosts the total number of Telstra locations across the three rounds of the program to more than 650 sites and represents a total Telstra investment of $260 million.
The Mobile Black Spot Program is co-funded by the Federal government and the State government’s Regional Telecommunications Project, which is administered by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.