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Drivers who break down on hundreds of miles of Wales’ roads cannot call for help because there is no mobile phone coverage, a motoring charity has warned.

A study by the RAC Foundation found that across the UK 4,561 miles of road – representing about 2% of the entire network – do not have any 2G coverage, which is the minimum required to make a call or send a text.

The 10 local authority areas with most miles of road lacking any mobile signal include three in Wales – Powys (437 miles), Gwynedd (172 miles) and Ceredigion (156 miles).

'Welsh rural areas besieged'

It has led to an AM saying it was "little wonder" that many rural areas of Wales felt "besieged".

A further 28,975 miles of road across the UK have partial 2G coverage, meaning only certain mobile operators provide a signal.

Motorists who rely on their smartphones to access the internet for route planning and to check for congestion could get into difficulty on 14,554 miles of road (around 6%) with a complete absence of 3G coverage, the study found.

(Image: Huw Silk)

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An additional 111,679 miles – some 45% – is only covered for 3G by some operators.

In terms of 4G, more than half (56%) of the road network has no coverage, while over a quarter (27%) has only partial coverage.

Bad for public safety, residents and business

The research was based on analysis of data published by communications regulator Ofcom.

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William Powell, Lib Dem regional AM for Mid and West Wales, said: "It speaks volumes for the lack of investment by mobile phone companies in our rural areas that three of the UK's top ten local authorities with the greatest length of roads without mobile coverage are in Mid and West Wales.

"Powys' 437 miles without mobile signal are clearly the worst in England and Wales. This is bad for public safety, inconvenient for residents and bad for business."

Saying all mobile providers should play their part in "investing in infrastructure in our rural heartlands", he added: "It is little wonder that, with painfully slow progress on Broadband, hundreds of miles of mobile not spots and the loss of key facilities, our rural communities sometimes feel besieged.

"These are areas where we need to see investment, if we are not to be left behind."

Warning from the RAC

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: “There are thousands of miles of road along which you would not want to break down or have an accident because calling the RAC, the emergency services or even home wouldn’t be an option.

“Even where there is partial network coverage it might not be from your network provider.

“The concepts of connected cars and drivers is at the heart of much thinking about how we might make our travelling lives easier. But the best ideas in the world will fall at the first hurdle if there are no bars on the phone.”

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The local authority areas with the most miles of road lacking any mobile signal are:

:: 1. Highland (452 miles of road with no coverage).

:: 2. Powys (437 miles).

:: 3. Argyll and Bute (293 miles).

:: 4. Cumbria (252 miles).

:: 5. Devon (243 miles).

:: 6. Dumfries and Galloway (237 miles).

:: 7. North Yorkshire (231 miles).

:: 8. Scottish Borders (226 miles).

:: 9. Gwynedd (172 miles).

:: 10. Ceredigion (156 miles).