3 months Ago
Blinders on connectivity issues at border regions
These rescaling emergency connectivity issues are very common in many towns in Noord-Limburg, including the community of Milsbeek, where residents and members of the old age community cannot find emergency connectivity that would reliably call for emergency assistance from emergency smart watches. Subscribers to mobile network providers often find and report that their phones are hopping between various mobile carrier networks, from Dutch mobile networks to German mobile networks or no mobile signal at all, leaving a considerable gap in mobile connectivity; the same connectivity issues have surfaced in other parts of Gelderland, such as the Achterhoek and the Veluwe.
Government, politicians, and telecom providers reaction
Local politicians have raised these issues as serious issues, and made it clear that, due to the liability of many such issues, mobile access for emergency services needs to vary but be guaranteed throughout the nation. Telecom providers, including KPN, Vodafone, and Odido, even stated that they comply with network regulations of up to 98 percent coverage of all municipalities, excluding protected areas (2000 coverage seems to be more accurate) and open (no claim on) water areas, which enable a connection. And responding to the concerns of local politicians and residents, telecom providers were even transparent that they purposely limit signal strengths on the upside near the borders, even if they intend to limit interference from mobile telephone networks outside of the country that can affect files, which reduces their levels of mobile service coverage regionally.
Options going forward
The governments in the province of Limburg have told us that they have escalated the issue at the national level. They want to enhance and involve the Dutch government and telecom networks to help with issues like this one. Limburg Commissioner Emile Roemer, who lives in Gennep, stated that he will partner with representatives of local governments in Gelderland and Overijssel, and with provincial staff in Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany, to measure and address the gaps in mobile coverage on the Dutch side of the border to potentially assist.
