Some areas in Bavaria are not completely covered by mobile communications. The district of Würzburg is also affected. Which communities are particularly hard hit?
Photo: dpa / Julian Stratenschulte
In over 43 percent of the Lower Franconian communities, there are “white spots” in the area of cell phone coverage, in which there has so far been no access to a cell phone via one of the telecommunications providers. This follows from the government’s response to a request from the Würzburg SPD member of parliament, Volkmar Halbleib. Of 305 Lower Franconian municipalities, 133 municipalities have at least one district in which there is no reliable cell phone reception.
What is the situation in the Würzburg district?
According to the State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, the city of Würzburg is free of major dead spots. However, the situation in the district is different. There are several communities affected by wireless holes in the mobile network, the results of the request. The holes are largest in Ochsenfurt, Thüngersheim, Leinach, Bütthard and Altertheim.
In Ochsenfurt there are dead spots in Zeubelried and Darstadt and only partial cell phone coverage in Hopferstadt, reports Manuel Wagner from the Ochsenfurt city building office. “On the part of the cards of the Federal Network Agency, however, only a dead spot in Darstadt is recognized,” says Wagner. Since the problem was identified by citizens and the city administration, it is currently being discussed with the Dr. Först Consult, a company for the development of broadband, traffic and regional management.
Michael Röhm, Mayor in Thüngersheim, is not aware of any major gaps in the mobile network: “We have two antenna locations in the local area that provide good coverage for this.” However, it does not rule out the possibility that there might be reception problems outside in the area of the scarlet salmon. “So far there has been no concrete feedback or complaints from there,” says Röhm.
Problems are often related to network providers
“The reception of mobile communications in Leinach depends heavily on the network operator,” explains Mayor Arno Mager. The telecom network covers all of Leinach, there are no problems there at all. The provider Vodafone also has a relatively good network, only the voice quality is a bit worse in some places, says Mager. The situation is different with the network operator O2. “We are very poorly supplied there, they just don’t have enough transmission towers,” says the mayor. However, the network operators are responsible for the installation of the transmission masts.
There is only one provider in Bütthard that provides an almost nationwide mobile network, Karin Herrmann of the main office of the Giebelstadt administrative community regrets. Therefore, a large part of the Büttharders use this provider. With other providers, the illumination of the radio network is not optimal. “Naturally, the Bütthard market would appreciate it if all providers made a nationwide mobile network available,” says Herrmann.
“Naturally, the Bütthard market would appreciate it if all providers made a nationwide mobile network available.”
Karin Herrmann, main office of the Giebelstadt administrative community–
The municipality of Altertheim borders on Baden-Württemberg. For Mayor Bernd Korbmann, this is a possible reason for dead spots. “In this transition area, there is sometimes poor cellular coverage,” said Korbmann. Ober- and Unteraltertheim are well illuminated by the mobile network. What didn’t work was the fire brigade digital radio. “I don’t yet know exactly where this problem comes from,” said the mayor. However, he did not notice any problems with the various providers.
Disadvantage for rural areas
“It was clear to me that we are still far from being reachable nationwide. However, the fact that we have clear gaps in more than four out of ten municipalities shows that too little has happened since the Bavarian mobile communications program in September 2018,” criticizes Halbleib. For the communities concerned, this is a disadvantage for the location and a disadvantage for rural areas.
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Wurzburg
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Maria Faiß
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Federal Network Agency
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Mayor and Mayor
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Reception problems
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Dead spots
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Radio networks
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Local governments
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Cellular technology and cellular telephony
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Cellular networks
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City of Wuerzburg
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Unteraltertheim
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Telecommunications company
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traffic
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Vodafone
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Volkmar Halbleib
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