Eighteen new or upgraded mobile base stations are on the verge of construction in Queensland’s north west, thanks to $17.15 million of funding from the federal mobile black spot telecommunications package announced last June.
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According to Queensland LNP Senator Barry O’Sullivan, mobile coverage for townships such as McKinlay, Normanton and Urandangi as well as crucial outback thoroughfares such as the Barkly Highway, between Mount Isa and Camooweal and the Wills Developmental Road, and between Burketown and Four Ways, will soon be a reality.
In total, 55 of the 157 identified mobile black spots in the north west will be covered by this latest round of funding.
Senator O’Sullivan reckons he’s probably worn out the better part of his throat and tonsils with the number of conversations he’s had about improving telecommunication infrastructure in rural and remote Queensland.
While it will never come soon enough for some, Senator O’Sullivan said there is a “sure and steady transformation” taking place across rural and remote Queensland this year, with significant rollouts of telecommunication and NBN satellite technology linking many communities for the first time.
He said while there was still much work to be done to lift the standards of connectivity in the bush, the gradual delivery of telecommunication infrastructure was providing clear evidence of the federal government’s commitment to rural Queensland.
“Australia is so vast and the demand for connectivity is so strong that the government has no choice but to roll out this infrastructure in a gradual way,” Senator O’Sullivan said.
“I think north west Queenslanders can take real pleasure from the fact they have been assured a massive share of this latest funding round.”
The Mobile Black Spot Programme will deliver almost 500 new or upgraded mobile base stations around Australia, with a total funding commitment of $385 million.
