The mast in Church Stretton, rural Shropshire, became the latest to be turned live under the £1 billion joint initiative between the government and the UK's four mobile network operators, which aims to increase operators' 4G coverage in rural areas.
The activity is also part of Vodafone's wider network modernisation programme which has resulted in its 4G coverage reaching 99 per cent of UK premises, and the recent retirement of its 3G network so 3G's radio frequencies can be used to strengthen 4G and 5G services across the UK. Other activities include the introduction of new mast technologies such as OpenRAN to provide coverage to more rural and remote locations across the UK.
Andrea Dona, network director at Vodafone UK, said, "Church Stretton is great news and reaching our 250th SRN site is a major milestone for our programme. As society relies more and more on connectivity, we are confident that – through SRN and our other rural initiatives – our customers, living, working and visiting rural locations will benefit from a strong voice signal and fast data speeds. Our mission to make sure no part of the UK is left behind."