Garbage trucks used to identify mobile 'no spots' in Gedling borough

Garbage trucks were used to map poor mobile phone coverage in the Gedling borough, it has been revealed.

The project, led by Nottinghamshire County Council (NCC), aims to identify areas with poor phone coverage and network capacity, known as 'no mobile areas'.

Over the past two years, special monitoring devices have been fitted to garbage trucks in the Gedling borough to identify mobile phones “not spots” in the area.

NCC said no personal data was collected, only the strength of signals from different providers.

– Advertisement –

The data will now be used to create public maps later this summer, so residents and businesses can find out which of the UK's main providers (EE, 02, Vodafone and Three) offer high-speed mobile phone signals (4G and 5G) in the district. .

Emma Branston, from the county council's digital team, led the project.

She explains why this data collection project was so vital.

She said: “Current data on mobile phone coverage does not always accurately reflect reality at street level, as there is evidence that coverage can vary within the same village or neighborhood.

“This innovative, best-value approach gives us the opportunity to now build a much more accurate street-by-street picture of Nottinghamshire’s mobile phone network.

– Advertisement –

“It also paves the way for our county to be better connected, as it will help us identify areas where improvements and actions are needed, particularly in rural areas where there may be potential gaps in coverage.