CURRAMULKA residents could soon be celebrating better mobile phone reception with a new tower just months away.
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But for the rest of the state, the news is disappointing.
The Yorke Peninsula town was one of only 11 sites in SA to get funding in round one of the federal government’s Mobile Black Spot Program.
![REACHING OUT: Robertstown resident Adrian Menzel said the roof of his house was the only place he got mobile service. He said he had been working on getting better coverage for his district the past 14 years. REACHING OUT: Robertstown resident Adrian Menzel said the roof of his house was the only place he got mobile service. He said he had been working on getting better coverage for his district the past 14 years.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/Fuxf4VmvfUmd225xeYC69T/90130440-1b40-4af9-908c-ae1d1727b91a.JPG/r0_219_4288_2630_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Member for Grey Rowan Ramsey is putting pressure on the state government to provide support for the upcoming second round of funding.
“The state missed out quite badly last time,” he said.
“NSW put in $24m and got 144 towers, WA put in $32m and got 130 towers.
“SA is the only state that didn’t put in any money and only got 11 towers.”
The mobile black spot program has $160m – $100m in the first round and $60m this round – to subsidise telecommunication companies to construct mobile phone towers in ‘black spot’ areas.
Residents throughout the state have responded in droves, registering 836 locations of poor to no mobile coverage on the government’s black spot database.
The federal government’s program guidelines said preference would go to the area covered, the population, major transport routes and co-contributions from other parties.
With the announcement expected in the second half of the year, Mr Ramsey said the state government needed to commit its support to the telecommunication companies considering tenders.
”Round one turned out to be good value for money,” he said.
“If we could get similar value for round two, there could maybe be another 300 towers and instead of six in SA, maybe we could get up to 40 in SA and make a real impact.
“I really fear if the state government doesn’t play ball, the program will go straight past us again.”
SA North Telstra area general manager John Tonkin said the program offered great opportunities for new towers in communities without service.
He said the company considered things such as technical feasibility, the population and the availability of additional funding in its proposals but added that, ultimately, the decision rested with the government.
The Stock Journal sought comment from Science and Information Technology Minister Kyam Maher on the government’s view of the round one result, and whether the government would contribute towards round two.
“As the federal government has released the guidelines for round two of its mobile black spot funding program, the state government will consider the next steps,” he said.
“We will consult widely as we identify the state's mobile black spot priorities.”