Cornwall Council is carrying out a mobile coverage investigation with support from its fleet of food waste vehicles.
The scheme will involve the local authority’s food waste collection trucks being used to travel the region’s road network and collect data about the strength of phone signal in different areas.
It is due to be completed this summer, with the study being carried out by expert surveyors, Streetwave.
The data will reveal 4G and 5G availability, download and upload speeds, and network-specific performance across Cornwall.
‘This will provide a better picture of mobile signal performance than coverage predictions alone which can often be inaccurate’, said Cllr Tim Dwelly, the council’s portfolio holder for economy, regeneration and investment.
He added that the investigation will reveal which areas struggle with poor mobile connectivity and barriers to accessing reliable services.
‘That will help us identify areas suffering from digital exclusion and enable us to advocate for investment and improvements where the need is greatest’, Cllr Dwelly explained.
