Mobile phone reception

Mobile phone reception in Sandy Point has always been very poor, particularly over the holiday period when the population swells to around 3000 people. The SPCG has for many years consulted with the appropriate authorities with the aim of obtaining a stronger signal strength, greater bandwidth to handle more traffic, and a more reliable service.

In June 2015 it was announced that the first round of funding under the Federal Government’s Black Spot Program would include the installation of a tower at Sandy Point. The new tower was constructed at the existing Telstra Exchange on Waratah Road, Sandy Point and became operational in July 2016. Results from this installation however have been very patchy. It seems that the location of the tower to the west of the township means that some residents in the western end of Sandy Point have improved reception. However, those with dwellings east of Ryans Rise are not getting much, if any benefit from it at all.

The Sandy Point Community Group is, as a result, still in negotiation with Telstra to try and get improved service for those people in the eastern end of the township. We have been pursuing the possibility of the installation of a small cell repeater somewhere in this area for a few years now but with no success so far. We will continue to pursue this option.

SPCG is presently engaging with a number of stakeholders to assist in progressing this important project.