By JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
A NEW $86 million program will cover two of 35 mobile phone black spots around the Geelong region.
Federal and state governments announced yesterday that the region would receive a new mobile phone base station at St Leonards and in the Brisbane Ranges National Park on Meredith-Steiglitz Rd.
The allocations left untouched major black spots around the region at Anglesea, Armstrong Creek, Avalon, Bannockburn, Barwon Heads, Clifton Springs, Jan Juc, Lara, Leopold, Ocean Grove, Point Lonsdale, Portarlington, Queenscliff, St Leonards, Torquay, Winchelsea and one Geelong-Melbourne rail services.
The two new towers will be among 109 erected across the state over the next three years, servicing up to 12,000 households and businesses in regional Victoria.
The black spot-elimination project received funding through a joint Labor State Government and Telstra bid to the Federal Government’s $100 million Mobile Black Spot Program.
Premier Daniel Andrews said the state committed $21 million to the project, working with Telstra and the Federal Government to maximise the amount of funding available.
Public safety and emergency management were high priorities in developing the black spots program, he said.
Minister for Regional Development Jaala Pulford said the black spot elimination program was a “game-changer for our regional and rural communities”.
“With an extra 12,000 households and businesses across regional Victoria to gain mobile coverage, this project will not only connect our communities, it will drive economic growth and support local jobs across the state.”
Emergency Services Minister Jane Garrett said the project would provide much-needed mobile coverage to small communities and areas prone to natural disasters in Victoria.
“We have worked closely with Emergency Management Victoria to ensure the new towers will provide coverage and enable easier access to emergency information specifically in bushfire-prone areas.”
