Kākātahi School on State Highway 4. Photo / Bevan Conley
Kākātahi School on State Highway 4. Photo / Bevan Conley
Rural cellphone and internet connectivity in the Whanganui district is set to take a big leap forward this year.
At a Whanganui Rural Community Board meeting, Whanganui District Council connected community adviser Jo Buckingham said two new cellphone towers could be operational on State Highway 4 Parapara by the endof the year.
One would be located at Kākātahi and the other at Otoko courtesy of Crown Infrastructure Partners (CIP), with investigations under way on another tower in that area and one for the upper Whanganui River area.
Buckingham said Tuatahi First Fibre (formerly Ultrafast Fibre) would extend its network from the Whanganui city boundaries to Westmere and Roberts Ave/Brunswick.
“I’ve spoken with Tuatahi and they said it was scheduled for a design and build starting from May this year,” she said.
“There is the ability for people with poor connections to also apply for that, although [CIP] haven’t said what poor connectivity is, they still haven’t decided.
“From my perspective, I recommend anyone apply for it.”
The RUS was announced last November as an application fund from which rural properties with no broadband might receive a one-off grant towards setting up and installing suitable broadband.
Buckingham said she was willing to travel up the Whanganui River to talk to residents about connectivity and funding applications.
Mowhanau Drive at Kai Iwi was one location tested by the council in February. Photo / Bevan Conley
Her report to the board said concerns had been raised over connectivity in Kauangāroa near the Whangaehu River and marae, and across the territorial border with the Rangitīkei District Council.
However, CIP said its current data for internet and cellphone via the Rural Connectivity Group towers and rural ISP Inspirenet was sufficient.
“I’ll keep saying it and wax lyrical, it’s about actually getting that data and getting that experience, and pushing it up to central government,” Buckingham said.
“I do see the benefits of doing that, for example, Tuatahi pushing out the fibre network.”
Elsewhere, a council plan to collect broadband and cellphone connectivity data at Mowhanau Beach was still in the works.
The first step was to engage directly with the Mowhanau Beach community to collect further data and insights concerning rural connectivity issues, with a mailout, local communications and a community barbecue event all part of the plan.
On January 17, the council used an Android tablet with mobile internet and phone capability to test the Mowhanau Beach area’s connectivity to the Spark network only.
The test showed parts of Rapanui Rd and Mowhanau Drive had no signal and a 3G connection was prevalent in the area.
Buckingham’s report to the board said the Mowhanau community would serve as a pilot case for others who were reporting rural connectivity issues including the Whanganui River Road and Kauangaroa (in conjunction with Rangitīkei District Council).
The Whanganui community can share their stories and concerns over the level of their connectivity, including cellphone reception, by emailing digital@whanganui.govt.nz.
