Government claims progress in fixing mobile and broadband blackspots
TELECOMS operators are working with local authorities to identify and remedy mobile blackspots.
Speaking at the launch of a report from the Government’s Mobile Phone and Broadband Taskforce, Communications Minister Denis Naughten also said that every local authority now had a broadband officer “as a single point of contact” for the public and telecoms operators in each local authority.
However, the report did not give a timeline for when mobile blackspots or rural broadband difficulties would be ameliorated.
The Government’s rural broadband rollout scheme has faced multiple setbacks as the Communications Department tries to agree details with operators about how the scheme might work.
At present, rural connections associated with the State-backed rural broadband scheme are unlikely to begin before 2018.
From then, they could take up to five years to complete.
Despite the delays, Government ministers claim that progress is being made on underlying infrastructural and planning issues.
Some 13km of ducting on the N25 road in Cork has been installed with the aim of helping telecoms operators to install equipment for broadband rollout along the route.
ComReg is “undertaking research” on whether it might license mobile repeaters in rural areas.
“The close collaboration and information sharing by the members of the Mobile Phone and Broadband Implementation Group will be of increasing importance to ensure improved broadband and mobile phone services are available to the people of rural Ireland,” said the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Michael Ring.