Like it or not, it’s not as easy as it once was to truly ‘escape’ on the Big Lap.
While a few years ago, most grey nomads travelling in remote or even semi-remote areas were truly disconnected from the trials and tribulations of whatever dramas were playing out with friends and family on the other side of the country, these days updates from ‘home’ are pretty much always a click of a button away.
Of course, satellite communication availability and affordability have played a huge role in that, and so too has the continued improvement in mobile coverage in regional Australia.
Increasingly, today’s traveller fully expects to be able to be in constant contact pretty much wherever they are … and things are improving on that front all of the time.
‘Hello. Yes, I’m fine. Don’t forget to put the bin out, will you?’ PIC: Siarhei Nester / Pexels
The Federal Government’s Better Connectivity Plan for Regional and Rural Australia – which is part of the Mobile Black Spot Program – has seen funding awarded for more than 1,400 new mobile base stations, with a combined investment of more than $1 billion.
The latest area to benefit has been the small Queensland community of Upper Stone, just west of Ingham, which now has a new mobile base station which will boost the connectivity of people living, working and travelling in the area.
Upper Stone is on the border of the Girringun National Park, and is well-known for its walking trails and camping.
Minister for Communications, Anika Wells, said no Australian should be left behind when it comes to connectivity.
“We are investing heavily in telecommunications infrastructure in partnership with industry to keep places like Upper Stone connected,” she said. “The new base station is important for local farmers as well as tourists taking in the beautiful waterfalls at the nearby Girringun National Park.”
And over in WA, the State Government is boosting mobile coverage at six popular surf beaches along the Esperance coast which it says will help keep beachgoers safe and support emergency services.
Six Cel-Fi repeater towers have now been completed and commissioned at Wharton Beach, Observatory Beach, Alexander Bay, and the 9, 10, and 11 Mile Beaches as part of the $2 million commitment to round two of the Surf Beaches Mobile Coverage Grants Program.
The infrastructure provides better mobile connectivity to regional and remote beaches used by tourists and locals for swimming, surfing, camping, fishing, snorkelling, and other recreational activities.
The six new Esperance repeaters are the first of 35 which will be installed along the Western Australian coast as part of round two of the program.
Round one of the program delivered 12 repeaters at beaches in the Pilbara, Wheatbelt, South West, and Great Southern.
Goldfields-Esperance Minister, David Michael, said it would all help make the area more attractive for travellers.
“Esperance is renowned for its surf beaches, with its unique white sands and turquoise waters a major drawcard for visitors and locals,” he said. “Boosting mobile coverage at these popular Esperance surf beaches is great not only for the local community but also visitors to be able to explore our South Coast with confidence.”
Whereas the safety benefits of massively improved communications are indisputable, there will still be some long-term travellers who perhaps secretly mourn the perceived loss of ‘freedom’ that constant communication brings.
“I remember when I was younger the sense of ‘disappearing’ when I was on a trip and the joy of reconnecting again with family after weeks or months of being incommunicado,” said veteran adventurer, Cynthia Kay. “Now, I feel the unspoken pressure to ‘check in’ back home virtually every day … despite not always wanting to!”
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You can go to Mongolia and phones work everywhere. Here in Australia where we think we aren’t third world where does the phone system work? It’s necessary in case of emergency without paying big bucks for it’s use. Our total phone system should be sattellite and there wouldn’t be a problem.
We did have an emergency and guess what, it wass outside of phone coverage.
My current provider doesn’t give constant reception & I’m only 2 hours south of Sydney! Over Christmas its none existent! I feel sorry for people in country towns. Personally, having a detox by turning the phone off is liberating!
I for one will love getting away from phones and the net and get back to nature with birds singing and water running through streams and even rain on the roofs
Bring on a starlink phone
Interesting, but, I think it might be important to mention, that, if you have a relatively new iPhone and subscribe through Telstra, you have free internet messaging via satellite, from anywhere in Australia for both incoming and outgoing messages.
When we bushed camped in the 90’s with our two young children, we would go into town, and use a public phone box, using a telecard and phoning all our relations, and also buying a weeks shopping.
We should have good communication everywhere, it could be life saving. After all you can always turn off your phone if you want to. Our phone reception is pretty poor even in outer suburbs, it’s not just in the outback, it all needs upgrading nationwide.
With the introduction of 5g it seems range is now worse than it has been in more than 10 years travelling
4g will not replace 5g in some areas as 4g has a greater range than 5g
Recently on a recent outback trip I came across an elderly couple on the side of the road with a broken fan belt Although this was the Stuart Highway there was no cellular reception. They said that a passing motorist would advise the RACNT in the next town approximately 120 km away. As I have a mini Starlink permanently attached to the roof I was able to ring the auto club advise them of the issue and the make a model of the vehicle and also told that they may be contacted by the passing motorist . Noting that help was on the way was a great relief to this couple .