Bin lorries to track mobile signal not-spots

Signal trackers will be fitted to the trucks to take a snapshot of the mobile signal weak spots

Bin lorries will be used to help find areas with poor mobile signal in Worcestershire.

Signal trackers will be fitted to the trucks to take a snapshot of the mobile signal weak spots.

Worcestershire County Council has asked residents to report any issues with bad phone connectivity across the county.

It also said a mobile transmitter will be used to boost the signal at big events such as those at the showground in Malvern and music festivals in Upton.

Adam Kent, the council’s cabinet member for economy and skills, said the signal in some areas is worse than it was 12 months ago.

In an economy overview and scrutiny meeting on Thursday he said: "The desire is for us to understand exactly where those weak spots are.

“We all know, if you drive down that road and you’re on a hands-free call, it will drop from ‘there’ to ‘there’. And those are the bits we’ve got to fill in – because that’s what kills businesses.”

Mr Kent said people will know they have to end calls because they are entering a certain village or area without signal.

“These things really do affect us. And they can change on a day as well.

“Telecoms companies can shift their bandwidth to suit, if the motorway’s busy. So it might be you can usually have a call in that location all the time, but suddenly on a Friday afternoon you can’t.

“It’s very embarrassing when a call drops six times when you’re trying to talk to somebody and sometimes you feel embarrassed that you live in a rural area."

The council's website will have a function for residents to record poor signal areas, which will be fed back to mobile operators.

The programme comes alongside moves by the UK government and mobile operators to improve reception in rural areas by collaborating more closely on their provision.

In its most recent update in September, the Shared Rural Network said that the area covered by at least one network had increased from 91% to 94.9% in the past four years.