Savernake residents in a black spot of bother

IT COULD be at least three years before the Savernake community gets better mobile service.

No connection: Adam Davis, from Rennie, may have to wait three years for a telephone serv

IT COULD be at least three years before the Savernake community in southern NSW gets better mobile service.

And that's if they are successful in gaining some of the Federal Government's $100 million mobile black spot program.

Last week, locals crammed the Savernake Hall to tell Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communication Paul Fletcher how a lack of mobile phone service was affecting their lives. them.

For Savernake livestock cartage contractor Hugh Gorman, it means leaving his mobile phone 20km away in Berrigan so his clients can leave messages which he “hopes are passed on”.

NSW Rural Fire Service control officer Graydon Davis said a recent accident involving a cattle truck on the Riverina Highway was not able to be accurately pinpointed due to the poor phone service.

“The wrong rescue service was activated because we could not get service," he said.

Riverine Plains committee member and farmer Jan Davis said technology was being pushed, but it was impossible to access on local farms.

Rennie farmer Adam Davis, a member of the NSW Young Farmers Council, said a recent survey of his peers showed poor mobile service was the key issue.

“People constantly talk about the divide between the city and the country and this illustrates it perfectly,” he said.

He said a list of possible candidates for improved service would be presented to the three major telecommunications companies by the end of June.

Successful black spot areas would be announced in the first half of next year.