WHEREAS Highway 37 and 37A is the major corridor in Northwest British Columbia, and sees large volumes of commercial, general and tourist traffic travelling through remote areas that are without cellular coverage; AND WHEREAS many small rural and remote communities in British Columbia are still without cellular coverage, and the absence of these services poses a hazard to all who travel through remote areas and affects the economic development of such regions: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that UBCM lobby the provincial government to continue with its commitment and ensure that cell phone coverage is available to the travelling public and industrial traffic throughout the province by the end of 2012.
Ministry of Labour, Citizens Services and Open Government The Government of British Columbia is committed to the strategy of leveraging its presence in the telecommunications market to encourage private sector expansion of Internet and cellular coverage in rural and remote areas of the province lacking these important services. As a result of this strategy, the Province and TELUS signed the Connecting British Columbia Agreement in the summer of 2011. Through this agreement, TELUS is committed to extending 1716 kilometres of cellular coverage along unconnected segments of primary and secondary highways by the end of 2016. Many of the unconnected segments identified in the agreement lie within the jurisdictions of North Central Local Government Association members. Complementing this strategy, the Province takes every opportunity to represent the interests of rural British Columbians to the federal government, which regulates the telecommunications industry. The Province advocates for federal policies that benefit all of its citizens equitably. It continues to urge the federal government to consult with the provinces and all levels of local government as it contemplates reforms to existing telecommunications policy and legislation.