More than 6000 homes in the Cessnock area are now eligible to access the National Broadband Network, with another 9000 due for connection by the end of the year.
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The fast-speed internet service has been a long time coming – considering the government’s original promise in 2013 that the whole country would have access to minimum speeds on the NBN by the end of 2016.
While belated, its arrival is undoubtedly good news for residents, business owners and visitors to the Cessnock area.
In today’s digital landscape, the internet is entrenched in our daily lives – many people’s work, study and even leisure time rely upon it.
Families will be able to download or stream content across several devices with less buffering and interruptions.
Having access to fast and reliable broadband could also open up all sorts of opportunities for local businesses, providing a far more efficient means of communication.
It could even make Cessnock City Council’s recent invitations to the Federal Government, Google and Amazon more appealing.
Meanwhile, Optus is working to upgrade mobile internet coverage along the Hunter Valley’s major highway corridors.
Telstra's mobile telephone coverage of the Hunter Expressway is also set for an upgrade, following representations from the Hunter Valley Wine and Tourism Association – who said the poor coverage affected the area’s appeal for tourism and business.
Unreliable internet and mobile connections have been an ongoing problem for people in Cessnock and surrounding areas.
Whether those frustrations will disappear when the NBN is rolled out in Cessnock remains to be seen.
Labor continues to label the Turnbull Government’s fibre-to-the-node NBN as ‘second-rate’. Hunter MP Joel Fitzgibbon has taken many complaints from constituents in Lake Macquarie who say they have experienced drop-out problems with the NBN or find the new system slower than their old service.
And there are still plenty more towns – including Kurri Kurri – that will have to wait until next year to be connected.
New technology is always going to have its problems. The government can’t just wave a magic wand and solve it all. But people are entitled to get the service they pay for.
