Blackspot exists in Greenlands 4380 along Texas Road and includes the Mallow RFS Station. Area was hit by bushfires in October 2023, several industry businesses, tourism and school in the area.
State or Territory:
VIC
Community Location:
Deans Marsh Road
Description of community needs:
There is a significant ongoing mobile blackspot in the vicinity of Deans Marsh Road (near Mt Sabine), resulting in no mobile signal being available for between 5 and 7kms of the road. The road is winding, narrow and heavily forested. Consequently there are road accidents and downed trees multiple times per year and such incidents can't immediately be reported because of lack of mobile coverage. Motorists report having to travel a further 10 minutes past the site of an incident before they can access mobile coverage.
The road is a primary route for people who work in Lorne and is a school bus route.
State or Territory:
VIC
Community Location:
Otway Ranges
Description of community needs:
Intermit mobile issues are regularly reported in townships in and around the Otway Ranges.
The topography of the Otways, being hilly and heavily forested, exacerbate the blackspots. The gaps in coverage present a major public safety concern given this is one of the highest fire risk locations in Australia. In summer the population of townships such as Lorne, Anglesea and Aireys Inlet can more than treble. The high visitor numbers create additional pressure on networks, with the effect that coverage is severely compromised when access to emergency information is most critical.
State or Territory:
ACT
Community Location:
Paddys River Road; Corin Road; Tidbinbilla Road; Cotter Dam; Casuarina Sands; Uriarra Village
Description of community needs:
Constituents and stakeholders in Mr. Smith's electorate have raised concerns of 'extremely poor' service in the location(s) mentioned above.
Cotter, Paddy's River, Tidbinbilla Road(s) and surrounding areas are high traffic/tourist corridors that connect the greater ACT region to the CBD. Said locations (some within 15–20 kilometres to CBD) receive zero coverage.
This is negatively affecting residents and hinders the local Rivers RFS' operations and response (Optus aware).
Being within proximity to the ACT, this issue has potential for serious risk, not just to said locations, but also to outer suburbs of Weston Creek and greater surrounds.
State or Territory:
VIC
Community Location:
Creswick-Newstead Road - between Broomfield and Campbelltown
Description of community needs:
Mobile coverage along this road is particularly patchy. It is a fairly major road, used a lot by locals, tourists, agriculture and general freight.
The road often is a major transport link between Bendigo and Ballarat - Victoria's 2nd and 3rd largest regional cities.
The area is also a high fire risk and therefore emergency connection is vital.
Hepburn Shire would consider in-kind support of community consultation, and planning approvals.
Co-contributions:
• Willing to discuss potential co-contributions (financial and/or in-kind) with program applicants
State or Territory:
WA
Community Location:
Eligible parts of Parkerville specifically north Kilburn Road up to Hidden Valley Road and south of Kilburn Road up to Clifton Road that are within the eligible areas.
Description of community needs:
Opportunities exist within the Shire of Mundaring for improvements to mobile reception and coverage. The locations include the eligible sections of Parkerville as referred to in the Location.
Addressing these black spots will assist residents generally and particularly will make a difference to the resilience of communities in the face of bushfire and emergency risks.
Co-contributions:
• Willing to discuss potential co-contributions (financial and/or in-kind) with program applicants
State or Territory:
NSW
Community Location:
Bondo State Forest Camp - Brindabella Road, Argalong
Description of community needs:
Installation of a tower and telecommunication facilities in the Bondo Camp (Bondo Forestry Headquarters) on the Brindabella Road. This location currently has no phone coverage.
Bush fires in this area would have a serious impact on the forestry industry as shown in the Black Summer Fires. In these fires telecommunication was severely impacted for extended periods of time.
Co-contributions:
• Willing to discuss potential co-contributions (financial and/or in-kind) with program applicants
State or Territory:
WA
Community Location:
Manjimup Southeast including Middlesex and Smith Brook
Description of community needs:
The area has significant coverage issues, black spots, poor connectivity, dropouts and unreliable data that affect business operations, tourism and community safety.
Residents and first responders, have raised concerns that in emergencies they may be unable to contact authorities, receive mobilisation information and delay response times in these areas.
The region, which is 90% bushfire-prone, experiences extreme weather, power outages and damage, disrupting communication networks.
The closure of 3G has worsened coverage, particularly in the listed areas, with farmers who once had it are now having to travel for better signal reception.
Co-contributions:
• Willing to discuss potential co-contributions (financial and/or in-kind) with program applicants
State or Territory:
WA
Community Location:
Northcliffe and surrounds including Boorara Brook, Callcup, Crowea and Meerup
Description of community needs:
Shire of Manjimup has significant coverage issues, black spots, poor connectivity, dropouts and unreliable data that affect business operations, tourism and community safety. The closure of 3G has worsened coverage, particularly in the listed areas.
Northcliffe is an isolated community over 60 kilometres from Manjimup surrounded by an extreme bushfire hazard, with a large contingency of inexperienced owners of forested properties and is also a tourism hub, leaving the area vulnerable from a telecommunications perspective in times of emergency.
This area is also subject to extreme weather events causing widespread damage and power outages.
Co-contributions:
• Willing to discuss potential co-contributions (financial and/or in-kind) with program applicants
State or Territory:
NSW
Community Location:
Sebastopol-Temora, Temora-Ariah Park, Temora-Methul and Coolamon-Temora
Description of community needs:
The Riverina electorate is susceptible to natural disasters, notably floods, fires and severe storms. A regional area, the Riverina is dependent on telecommunications for accessing support services.
Telecommunications play a vital role in managing and mitigating the impacts of natural disasters in the region. Its effectiveness influences emergency response, recovery efforts and community resilience.
Community feedback has identified locations in need of improved coverage to ensure reliable and efficient responses during natural disasters, foster quicker recovery efforts and enable a better prepared and more resilient community.
