Red lights blinking on the side of the mountain herald a recent addition to the landscape in Burton: cell phone and internet service. Over the holidays, a Telus telecommunications tower was put up as one part of a ten-year agreement with the Province. Telus is installing towers across B.C., with 862 kilometres of wireless coverage along remote highways completed to date, Telus spokesperson Liz Sauvé told the Arrow Lakes News.
The Connecting British Columbia Agreement, signed in 2011, means an additional 854 km is scheduled to be installed by 2017. The towers provide cell phone and internet coverage along primary and secondary highways, enhancing safety of travel across the province, said Sauvé.
The 24 km along Highway 6 now provides wireless coverage to Makinson, Carrolls Landing and Burton. Sauvé said a tower in the Fauquier area near the ferry terminal is in the planning stages, and is scheduled for completion in 2015.
A tower proposal on private land in Winlaw was the source of controversy in early 2013. Concerns were raised that the tower there was too close to residents’ homes and schools.