Upgrade to affect coverage

Telstra is upgrading a local mobile base station with new 4G and 5G infrastructure, and says the works will require a series of temporary outages or reduction in mobile coverage this week.

The Balliang East mobile base station is being upgraded, with the improvements meaning there will be no mobile coverage from the site from Monday 4 December to Friday 8 December.

The mobile network won’t be impacted on the weekend of 9 and 10 December, with temporary disruptions during daylight hours on Monday 11 December as integration and call testing are completed.

Telstra’s Regional General Manager, Steve Tinker, said crews would only be switching the site off when needed.

“There’s never a good time to undertake this sort of work, but once it is completed, it will mean better mobile services for local residents,” Mr Tinker said.

“As a company, we heavily invest in improving regional connectivity, and this site is another example of our commitment. Over the past seven years to the end of FY23, Telstra invested $11 billion in our mobile work nationally, with $4 billion of this invested in our regional mobile network.”

Telstra mobile customers will receive text messages advising of the works, and landline services, NBN internet services, and mobile coverage from other providers won’t be impacted.

Any calls to Triple Zero from a Telstra mobile in the area will automatically be delivered to any working mobile network for connection to emergency services while the Balliang East site is off air.

Telstra advises Balliang East residents affected by the temporary outage to turn on wi-fi calling, which allows most mobile phones to use the internet to make and receive calls.

The infrastructure upgrade, when completed, is set to provide better network connectivity and reduce congestion during peak periods.