Telstra upgrading 4G and 5G coverage at Galore Hill.

Infrastructure Upgrade - Update from Telstra 31/01/24

Telstra will be upgrading its mobile base station located at Galore Hill by adding additional infrastructure to bring better 4G & 5G services to the surrounding community, but the works will require a series of temporary outages or reduction in mobile coverage.

The base station at Galore Hill provides coverage to the agricultural area between Lockhart and Narrandera, including the Sturt Highway.

These improvements will temporarily impact Telstra mobile coverage at various times from Wednesday the 07 February to Friday 23 February 2024. Some customers may still receive overlapping coverage from other nearby mobile base stations.

Disruptions of up to 8 hours per day may be experienced from Thursday 08 February to Friday 16 February while the first phase of work takes place.

The second phase of disruptions will be experienced from 7am on Monday 19 February to 5pm on Thursday 22 February. The site is expected to be off the air for this entire period.

Disruptions of up to 4 hours per may be experienced on Friday 23rd of February whilst call testing and commissioning works are undertaken.

If all goes according to plan and weather permitting the mobile upgrade will be completed on the 23rd of February 2024.

Telstra mobile customers will receive text messages advising of the upcoming work.

Landline services, NBN internet services and mobile coverage from other providers will not be impacted. Any calls to Triple Zero from a Telstra mobile when the site is off air will automatically be diverted to any working mobile network for connection to emergency services.

Regional General Manager for Telstra, Chris Taylor said while our crews need to work during daylight for safety, we'll only be switching off the site when we need to and have it back on as quickly as possible.

"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," Chris Taylor 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 network nationally, with $4 billion of this invested in our regional mobile network."

Tips for improving connectivity while works are underway

For mobile coverage in the interim, if residents have access to a wi-fi signal at home or at work, Telstra encourages residents to activate wi-fi calling. This is a free setting on most popular mobile phones and allows your mobile to use a Wi-Fi network to make and receive mobile calls. To find out more they can google Telstra wifi calling or just search in your settings icon on your phone.

We know many businesses use the Telstra network for their EFTPOS terminals. However, Telstra does not operate the EFTPOS network; it is operated by financial institutions. Many EFTPOS terminals can also be connected using fixed line or Wi-Fi/nbn internet connections. Retailers should contact their bank for more information and details on how to switch between these methods to ensure continuous service.