Optus is installing nine satellite small cells along almost 2000km of highway across Western Australia which the telco says provide the potential for an inexpensive and flexible alternative to traditional mobile towers.
Optus also says installation of the small cells, when used in conjunction with satellite connectivity and backhaul, provides the combined benefits of expanding mobile coverage in a concentrated local area in rural, remote and previously unserviced locations.
The small cells will be located at selected locations on the Highway 1 route between Geraldton and Broome and are designed to boost mobile coverage for residents and travellers across nine remote but significant locations in the northwest of the state.
Optus Networks acting managing director, Dennis Wong, said, the telco is investing significantly to strengthen and broaden the Optus mobile network coverage in regional areas, and the rollout is a “natural progression following the small cell infrastructure that was successfully delivered in the Northern Territory earlier this year”.
{loadposition peter}“We’ve seen that this technology delivers a choice in mobile services for workers and residents in and around key locations, as well as providing much needed capacity for visitors, making it a vital improvement to our network in remote regions.”
The small cells deliver mobile phone coverage up to a 3 kilometre radius depending on the surrounding topography.
“Optus is well established as a provider of satellite networking technology, and we are continuing to expand and innovate to provide mobile and satellite solutions for our customers across the country,” Wong says.
Wong says Optus continues to actively explore small cell technology following the first rollout of the satellite small cell provisioning in the Northern Territory in 2016 which boosted mobile network coverage along the Stuart Highway between Katherine and Uluru.
Western Australia satellite small cell locations are:
• Billabong Roadhouse
• Overlander Roadhouse
• Wooramel Roadhouse
• Minilya Roadhouse
• Nanutarra Roadhouse
• Fortescue River Roadhouse
• Pardoo Roadhouse
• Sandfire Roadhouse
• 80 Mile Beach