Sixty-seven new mobile base stations will be built across Australia under Round 5A of the Mobile Black Spot Program.
The 67 base stations, to which local governments will be co-contributing costs, will address coverage issues across regional and remote Australia, including in bushfire-prone areas and along major highways.
They are expected to collectively deliver over 12,000 square kilometres of new and improved handheld coverage
Over $20.5 million has been allocated to fund Round 5a, which has been testing new approaches to supporting improved mobile coverage.
The round includes funding for a trial solution of seven base stations from Thargomindah to Waihora in Queensland, including at East Thargo, Dynevor Downs, Bulloo, Paroo, and Eulo that will allow all mobile network operators to provide services.
The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, and Communications website has a full list of base stations funded under Round 5A.
In other federal funding news, 82 projects have been approved for a total of more than $19 million in joint Commonwealth/state funding provided through the latest round of the Queensland Resilience and Risk Reduction Fund (QRRRF).
The 82 projects include extensive road, floodway and levee upgrades, flood and river studies, and disaster management workshops across Queensland