Cellular strength in Keswick

[PamArnold]

I live near Stephen Leacock Theatre and have never had reliable cell phone service through Roger's. I thought it was just the way it is for everyone in this area until recently when our home flooded. I could not call for assistance because our home phone and internet was out and my cell phone nor cell data worked. Thank goodness my daughter was here because she had full bars and full data on her phone with another provider. I wonder if anyone else in this area has the same problem? I am at a loss as to what to do other than change providers and I really don't want to do that if this can be fixed. I thought most companies used Roger's towers. I am open to suggestions. btw, I have reported this for many years with no resolve

[Datalink · Accepted solution]

@PamArnold here's a link to a cell tower map. 

https://www.scadacore.com/tools/rf-path/cell-tower-map-canada/#

When you bring this link up you will see a Latitude and Longitude entry window.  Enter the following:

Latitude: 44.2442
Longitude: -79.4703

Hit the search function.  Depending on how far you might have already zoomed into the map, the result might not show the Keswick United Church.  So, zoom in and hit the search function again.  Keep doing that until the map is zoomed into the Keswick United Church.

That is the Freedom Mobile cell tower location at the Keswick United Church which is located on 177 Church St, Keswick.  There is a tear drop shaped marker that you can grab and move to your home's location.   When you zoom out slightly, you should be able to see any cell towers in your vicinity.  That includes red x - Rogers and Fido, red question mark - Freedom Mobile, blue B - Bell.  With the marker parked at your home's location, select or click on the red x marks or any of the other cell tower symbols to see the plot of the terrain and distance from your home to the selected cell tower.  Hopefully, locating your home on the map and zooming out an appropriate distance you will have a better idea of the cell towers located near your home.  

Its possible to have your phone use other cell towers from other companies but that would depend on the level of service that the phone detects from Rogers cell towers.  I don't know if you can manually force the phone to roam to other cell provider towers.  That's a valid question that you might want to pursue.   

[toolcubed]

Based on your location, Rogers towers are too far away to provide adequate coverage so I’m not surprised that you have problems with reception. There’s a Freedom Mobile tower and a Bell tower in close proximity to your location so I’m assuming your daughter is with Freedom, Bell, or Telus (Bell and Telus share the same network).

You need to continue to let Rogers know about the poor service. The only way they can fix this problem is to install additional infrastructure (i.e. more cell towers) in your area, and that’s a very lengthy process. Even if they have plans to install more towers, they would need to get approval from the town, get construction permits, etc before they even begin to build the towers. It’s a process that could literally take years if ever. Having said that, Rogers could already have plans to install a tower in your vicinity and perhaps they’ve even received approval already, but it’s almost impossible to know. You could try asking Rogers but I doubt anyone you speak to will have this information. You could also try finding out from the town but again, it’s a stretch and you’d likely not get very far.

If I was in your position, based on what I’m seeing on a cell tower map, I would probably look into changing cell providers. You could be waiting around for months or years before Rogers can fix the coverage issue, or they may never fix it.

EDIT:

I found the link below. You can try giving them a call to see if they’ve received any recent approval requests from Rogers to install new cell towers in your area:

https://www.georgina.ca/living-here/planning-and-development/radiocommunication-towers

[PamArnold]

Thank you soooooo very much. Roger's keeps telling me I have reliable service and I just need a new phone. Looking at these towers I can see why my phone doesn't work.

[PamArnold]

This is so upsetting to me. Roger's has mislead me for several years now. The last attempt was that I needed a newer cell phone, I have a galaxy S8. This entire situation has left a bad feeling in me for Roger's. We have been loyal for 23 years but they have not been transparent. I have wasted thousands of dollars on cell service. I am so disheartened.

[toolcubed]

I hear you and totally understand your frustration. It’s bad optics. Having said that, Rogers’ primary goal as a business is to retain you. Obviously I don’t agree with them misleading you but I can totally understand why they told you what they told you.

As I’ve suggested before, call the town to see if they have any info about upcoming cell tower construction in your area. If they don’t, I would look into switching to another provider.

[PamArnold]

I reached out to the town and no new tower applications. 🙁 Ugh!

[toolcubed]

So there’s your answer. I would not hesitate a second to switch providers based on Rogers tower proximity to your location, the info you received from the town, and the fact that your daughter gets good coverage there with another provider. Easy decision if you ask me 🙂