Yukon Government sign outside the Jim Smith Building in downtown Whitehorse. CKRW File Photo Courtesy of Macklen Linke.
Whitehorse, YT – The Yukon government is pressing federal regulators and Bell Canada to fix ongoing cellphone service problems in the territory.
In letters to Bell, the CRTC and federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly, the government cites dropped calls, slow data and coverage gaps on highways and remote areas, along with outages during busy periods and emergencies.
It says reliable mobile service is essential in Yukon because it is used for emergency response, safety and day-to-day travel across a large remote region.
The government is asking Bell to explain the problems, outline planned upgrades and provide a timeline for improvements, and is urging regulators to step in to improve service standards.
Bell says they have invested more than $20 million in Yukon wireless infrastructure since 2019 and is open to government partnerships.
The letters follow similar concerns raised two years ago by former premier Ranj Pillai, who criticized unreliable service in Whitehorse and called it unacceptable for a national carrier.
