May 30, 2014
At least some of the Wide Bay Burnett region’s mobile phone black spots should get some Federal funding, Wide Bay Burnett Regional Organisation of Councils (WBBROC) chairman Mal Forman said today.
WBBROC mayors met with Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss today to discuss the need to address the black spots and presented him with a list of 10 key priority blackspots, including areas in the South Burnett.
“Warren Truss gave us a good hearing. He obviously understands the need to fix up as many black spots in the region as possible,” Cr Forman said.
“Although the funding that this region would receive would be limited, the Deputy Prime Minister seemed to think that a small number of our priorities may be able to be addressed.
“From the 2682km of the Wide Bay Burnett region we have tested, WBBROC has agreed on 10 key priority black spots and we discussed each of these with the Deputy Prime Minister.”
Cr Forman said the WBBROC mayors also pointed out that it was not just the serious consequences in times of disaster, or when accidents occurred.
Good telecommunications were also essential to the economy of the region, he said. In order for business to thrive, it needs access to a telecommunications system that works and is reliable.
Cr Forman said that WBBROC Mayors were pleased with the sympathetic hearing they received.
Next week, WBBROC will meet with NBN and Vodafone in Brisbane (they have already met with Telstra).
“We will emphasise how we can support the telecommunications carriers to address these regional black spots,” Cr Forman said.
“Commonwealth Government funding for addressing black spots is imminent, and we want these telecommunications carriers to work with us if they are successful in accessing some of this funding.
“In some cases, Councils have land that could be made available for mobile phone towers. While Councils will be keen to allow any suitable land to be used, we will be telling the telecommunications carriers that any towers that are erected, should be available for more than one mobile phone company.
“Planning approvals are also a stumbling block for expanding mobile phone towers, and can cause long time delays. Our members are keen to work with the carriers to speed up planning approvals wherever possible.”
WBBROC is the peak organisation representing the six councils that make up the Wide Bay-Burnett: South Burnett, Cherbourg, North Burnett, Gympie, Fraser Coast and Bundaberg.
Related articles:
