O2 bolting black boxes to lampposts to fix signal in busy UK town centres
Key Points
- O2 has activated five outdoor small cells attached to lampposts across Tonbridge town centre
- The units add 4G and 5G capacity in the town's busiest locations without new masts
- Freshwave installed the small cells on O2's behalf with Kent County Council
- The rollout is part of Virgin Media O2's UK-wide Mobile Transformation Plan
O2 has switched on five small cells fixed to lampposts across Tonbridge town centre, adding 4G and 5G capacity in the Kent town’s busiest spots.
Virgin Media O2 announced the deployment in a press release, saying infrastructure company Freshwave installed the units on its behalf in partnership with Kent County Council.
The black boxes are outdoor small cells, a compact form of mobile infrastructure that attaches to existing street assets such as lampposts rather than requiring a new mast.
Each unit adds network capacity across a small area, easing congestion where large numbers of people use their phones at the same time.
O2 said the five Tonbridge units sit in some of the busiest locations in the town centre and complete a wider upgrade of its mobile infrastructure in the town.
Kent County Council owns the street lighting the units hang from, and the council said the approach avoided the need for new masts in the town centre.
“By using streetlights to host mobile technology, we have been able to support improved digital connectivity in Tonbridge without the need for significant new infrastructure in the town centre,” said David Wimble, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Special Projects at Kent County Council.
O2 said the demand driving the deployment comes from mobile data usage that keeps climbing every year.
“Mobile data usage continues to grow year after year, making it increasingly important that we invest in infrastructure which can keep pace with customer demand,” said Rob Joyce, Director of Mobile Access Engineering at O2.
Freshwave, which builds and operates shared mobile infrastructure for UK network operators, installed the units on the council’s lampposts.
“By deploying infrastructure where it’s needed most, we can help provide better mobile experiences while supporting the growing connectivity needs of local communities,” said Neil Barnes, Mobile Network Operator Account Director at Freshwave.
Tom Tugendhat, MP for Tonbridge, Edenbridge and North Downs Villages, campaigned for the upgrade after residents complained about unreliable signal in the town centre.
“I’m delighted this is changing, starting with the new small cells now live in Tonbridge,” said Tugendhat.
O2 said the Tonbridge rollout forms part of Virgin Media O2’s wider Mobile Transformation Plan across the UK, with small cells taking a growing role in adding capacity in busy towns and city centres.
