Joint media release
The Hon Paul Fletcher MP
Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts
The Hon Mark Coulton MP
Minister for Regional Services, Decentralisation and Local Government
Mr Gavin Pearce MP
Member for Braddon, Tasmania
Works have begun on the West Coast of Tasmania to improve mobile coverage in the region as part of the Federal Government's joint project with Telstra.
The Morrison Government is contributing $790,000 towards the $5.2 million project which is increasing mobile network capacity throughout the West Coast of Tasmania.
Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts, Paul Fletcher, Minister for Regional Services, Decentralisation and Local Government, Mark Coulton, and Member for Braddon, Gavin Pearce today announced the funding agreement has been executed and the project is now underway.
"This project will bring significant benefits to people living in regional communities on the Western Tasmanian Coast," said Minister Fletcher.
"It includes a new mobile base station to Tullah and 4GX service upgrades to Rosebery, Queenstown, Savage River, Strahan, Zeehan and Waratah. This is great news as 4GX can go further than previous 4G frequencies, extending coverage for these communities."
Telstra has commenced work on the project and expects to have the first 4GX upgrades coming online around 12 months from now.
Minister Coulton said Telstra, the West Coast Council and Waratah-Wynyard Council had worked with the Federal Government to improve service for Tasmanians and visitors to the Apple Isle.
"This is a terrific example of government working in partnership with business and local councils to deliver much needed outcomes for communities," said Minister Coulton.
"This investment will help bridge the digital divide in Tasmania, more than doubling the existing backhaul capacity to these towns to meet the current and future needs of the communities in the area."
"The new mobile base station and upgraded services will deliver much needed connectivity to Tasmanian families and small businesses operating in the area," said Mr Pearce.
"It will also provide significant benefits for the thousands of tourists who visit the region every year, including improved coverage for those driving the popular scenic route from Cradle Mountain to Strahan."
Telstra's Regional General Manager, Michael Patterson, said: "This huge investment will not only boost the capacity of our network to better serve communities on the west coast - it'll also increase the resilience of our services by expanding the technologies we use."
The project complements the Federal Government's $18.5 million commitment to deliver fast broadband upgrades to the West Coast of Tasmania through a mix of NBN fixed line and fixed wireless technologies.
The Government's Mobile Black Spot Program is also delivering 47 new mobile base stations in Tasmania. More than 33 of these base stations have already been completed.
