PLANS for a new 5G phone mast in Oldbury Court have been unveiled.
Applicant Telent Technology Services says the 18m (59ft) mast at the junction of Sheppard Road and Lanaway Road, near the estate’s shops, is needed to address complaints about “poor” mobile phone coverage and signal in the area for network operator EE.
But objections to the plans have been registered on the city council’s planning website, with opponents saying it should be rejected on size, appearance and safety grounds.
The planned mast would include six antennas, with four cabinets at ground level.
The applicants say the mast is needed “predominantly to address a gap in EE coverage and network capacity to Fishponds, whereby the existing coverage and capacity is very poor”.
They said there had been “a large number of customer complaints surrounding poor mobile phone coverage and signal” in the area.
The applicants said: “It is acknowledged that the location is within a dense built-up area that includes both commercial and residential properties. However, this is the location that is required for the operator to provide the required coverage and capacity to the target coverage area.”
They said the mast would also BE part of the 4G emergency services network, and should therefore be seen as “critical infrastructure”.
The applicants said they had discounted 11 alternative sites, from nearby Gill Avenue and the grounds of Frome Vale Academy to Fishponds Road, Staple Hill, Downend and Frenchay Road.
Diagrams indicate that the new mast will be shorter than an existing mast a few metres away but taller than the trees next to it – and twice the height of some homes nearby.
‘Overbearing, obtrusive and unsightly’
A tree survey says the nearby mature trees will not need to be removed but “minor facilitation pruning” may be needed.
As the Voice went to print, three objections had been submitted to the council.
The first objection, marked as coming from a residents’ group, said: “It is too close to residents and will spoil the character of the location.
“The height of this 5G apparatus in this location is overbearing, obtrusive and unsightly.”
Another objection called for the proposal to be rejected “due to increasing evidence of 5G harm to people and wildlife”.
The third objection said a previous application nearby had been refused on the grounds of its “size, bulk, design, height and prominent position”.
All raised safety concerns over 5G, but the applicants said the planned mast complies with international safety guidelines, which meant “it should not be necessary for the local planning authority to consider the impacts of health concerns”.
The plans can be found on the planning section of the city council website, by using the reference number 24/02551/Y.
Picture: The mast would be put up between the two trees, at the spot marked by the red line. An existing mast stands closer to the junction with Gill Avenue.