Margaret Haddon has been living in Lansdowne since 1973, and says she's had problems with her landline, then mobile and internet service, the entire 51 years, however, the degradation of service has been worse over recent months, she says.
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She's not alone; other residents of Lansdowne and Upper Lansdowne, Coopernook and Harrington are similarly afflicted, and the complaints are the same: intermittent or non-existent mobile or internet service, and congestion during peak holiday times.
Business owners in the area are extremely frustrated with eftpos continually down, hampering their ability to run their businesses.
"In today's digital age, reliable telecommunication services are not a luxury but an essential need for businesses and residents alike," Amanda Bennett, a business owner in Harrington said, in a change.org petition she has created in an attempt to improve telecommunications infrastructure in the area.
Community members are particularly concerned about public safety, with residents concerned about accessing emergency services, and worried about future disasters such as bushfires and floods.
Meeting with Telstra
Sick of ringing Telstra about the issue, Marg Haddon and other concerned Lansdowne residents took matters into their own hands and organised a public meeting on February 8.
Two Telstra representatives were at the meeting to hear people's concerns and try and answer questions, regional manager Josh Fulwood, and network engineer, Dave.
Marg says they had a big turnout and it was a successful meeting.
"Most of the people who were at the meeting were happy with what was said," Marg says, adding that she believes the Telstra representatives were frank, honest, and explained things well.
At the meeting Mr Fulwood said that new hardware installed during a recent upgrade to the tower at Vincents Lookout was set at an incorrect angle which has caused the more recent problems. The meeting was told this has now been rectified, and Mr Fulwood asked residents to monitor their service to see if their service has improved or not.
New towers on the way
Residents were also told a new tower being constructed at Emerton Close in Cundletown (near the new truck interchange) will soon come online and should greatly assist the community.
There was also a commitment to build another tower between Coopernook and Moorland, however that will be around a year in the future.
However, Mr Fulwood told the meeting that "rolling out new towers is very expensive, and that Telcos, being now privately owned, have to answer to their shareholders who are wanting to see a good profit."
Member for Lyne Dr David Gillespie was invited to come to the meeting but was unable to attend. However, in a press release, Dr Gillespie said he has "invited the newly recommenced Regional Telecommunications Review Committee to see firsthand just how bad reception is in the electorate".
"The issue is felt right across the electorate, which spans 16,000 square kilometres, and it feels like we are going backwards. It is simply not good enough," Dr Gillespie said.
"I am taking this message to the telcos and I will be taking it to the Review."