Vodafone to expand 4G mobile services along major Victorian railway corridors
23 new Vodafone sites to improve services in regional Victoria
Vodafone today announced it will expand its 4G services in regional Victoria by participating in the Victorian Government’s Regional Rail Connectivity Project.
The Victorian Government led initiative will see Australia’s three major carriers come together to deliver improved mobile services along the state’s five major regional lines as part of the state government’s commitment to fixing mobile black spots.
As part of the project, Vodafone will build 23 new sites along train lines in Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Seymour and Traralgon. Of those 23, Vodafone will co-locate its network with all carriers on 13 sites, and two carriers on five sites.
Vodafone Chief Technology Officer Kevin Millroy said the company’s participation in the Victorian Government’s Regional Rail Connectivity Project is part of its ongoing network investment to support growing demand for advanced mobile devices and services in Victoria, particularly in regional areas.
“Vodafone is a proud participant of the Regional Rail Connectivity Project. This a great example of government and the industry working together to achieve better outcomes for regional Australians,” said Mr Millroy.
“More than 15 million people travel along these train routes each year and we see this as an opportunity to deliver our 4G services to these commuters.
“In addition to our participation in the project, we are also investing more than $5 million* to expand our 4G network in regional Victoria, including Albury-Wodonga, Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Mildura-Wentworth and Shepparton.”
Enjoying faster mobile services in Victoria
Through Vodafone’s continued investment and re-farming program, customers in key regional areas of Victoria including Albury, Ballarat, Bendigo, Mildura and Shepparton have already seen some speed rates double.
Vodafone recently reallocated its 2100MHz spectrum from 3G to 4G on 425 sites in major metro areas of Melbourne, after renewing its 2100MHz spectrum license for $544 million, including 2x 25 MHz in Melbourne.
Mr Millroy said the company’s ongoing work demonstrates that Vodafone is prepared to invest in its network to deliver great choice, value and competition for consumers in metropolitan and regional areas.
“The combination of 2100MHz and 850MHz spectrum means that Vodafone customers should now enjoy high-quality indoor 4G mobile coverage and faster download speeds,” said Mr Millroy.
“Vodafone’s improvements means consumers are the big winners.”
The recent independent P3 network benchmark tests as part of the P3 CommsDay Mobile Benchmark 2016, confirmed through exhaustive testing that VHA has the best aggregate voice and data performance in cities with a population over 100,000.
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Notes to editors
*Investment period is 2016 – 2017.
4G is available with a compatible 4G device. To find out where we have 4G see vodafone.com.au/coverage
Vodafone’s interactive regional mobile investment map includes the locations and timings of the 112 sites in regional Australia.
P3 CommsDay Mobile Benchmark 2016 states Vodafone “had the best aggregate voice and data performance” in Major Cities. Based on a combination of all voice and 4G-preferred data performance results. Drive Tests in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Geelong, Wollongong and Newcastle. Walk Tests in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth. Testing by P3 Communications between 5-18/11/16 using Android devices.