WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — It’s no secret that cell service across parts of Williamsburg remains a serious issue. David Wunibald said it's a common problem in his neighborhood by the Jamestown Settlement.
“Cell service in that area is very intermittent,” he said. “You can’t hardly get a phone call.”
A recent study confirms what city leaders and residents already know. The city contracted Crown Castle, to conduct the cellular service study which looked at three different providers — AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile.
“It showed that they’re all good in certain areas of the city and that they all have their own issues in other spots,” said Mark Barham, the chief information officer for the city's Information Technology department.
Barham said the city doesn’t have much control over cellular connectivity. This is the work of the cell phone carriers. So, the goal here is to share this information with those companies.
“Hopefully, using the data that we provide them to further enhance their networks in Williamsburg,” he said.
The other idea — buying cell-on-wheels units, also known as cell towers, to enhance cell service which was part of the initial plan.
"The city was looking to purchase what we call cell-on-wheel," Barham said. "While the units themselves are not overly expensive, you know $30,000 to $40,000 for this unit... the cost comes with getting the carriers to agree to add a small cell for their particular network onto that cell-on-wheels."
He said that costs seem to be expensive but there are other options on the table.
“We did talk to T-Mobile and Verizon …and they all agreed that they have a fleet of cell on wheels to use in an emergency," Barham said.
Barham said they could even use those units during big city events.
He hopes by sharing this insight with phone carriers, residents will get quick action on their service issues.
"The solution is born by the carriers," he said. "To be fair to the carriers, this is not a quick and easy turnaround. You can't just stand up cell service in a quick manner. That's something that takes lots of planning, lots of engineering."
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