New Brunswick partners with Bell Canada for better cell service in rural areas

New Brunswick's provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, Monday, July 6, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The Government of New Brunswick is partnering with Bell Canada to improve cellular coverage in rural areas of the province.

“Improving cell coverage is a priority for this government, and, while we’re making real progress, there’s still more work to do,” said Finance and Treasury Board Minister René Legacy. “We are pleased that, by leveraging an existing procurement structure, we were able to partner with Bell to deliver better service in the short term as we forge ahead with our overall strategy.”

Existing communications towers used by the government will be used to speed up the distribution of equipment from Bell Canada.

The service provider announced Tuesday that work on the first 10 sites will begin in 2026 and finish by mid-2027.

The Department of Finance and Treasury Board, which is responsible for the government’s telecommunications strategy, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure, which manages tower and site infrastructure, the procurement division of Service New Brunswick and the Regional Development Corporation collaborated to implement this initiative.

Legacy said rural parts of the province can look forward to more reliable cell service.

“We continue to work diligently on this file,” said Legacy. “We have a number of additional initiatives already in progress, and are looking forward to sharing more about those soon.”

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