New 5G mast constructed near busy Weymouth roundabout

Arguments over ‘visual clutter’ failed to dissuade Dorset councillors from approving the Weymouth Way site, just off the Manor Roundabout, when they discussed the proposal last October.

The new mast, which was completed during the week, will support six mobile phone antennas and bring 5G to the area for the first time.

It is on the grass verge near the Manor Roundabout off Greenway Road with cabinets for technical equipment at its base. Other, smaller, masts are already in the area, one of which will be removed when the new mast is fully operational.

Objections to the proposal, when it was discussed, included fears that rays from the mast could be harmful to people’s health and that having three masts in place near the roundabout would be unsightly.

The new mast in place near Manor Roundabout Picture: Trevor Bevins

But the area planning committee heard that planning officers backed the location because no better site could be found.

Among the objectors was Mary Jordan-Winter who told the committee that the mast and its associated cabinets “would give a cluttered look to the gateway to Weymouth.”

Another objector, Roma Harding, said that the town should not be test ground for the technology which, she claimed, had yet to be proven to be safe, although the mast operators deny this, saying that it meets all national standards.

Vicky Parson, agent for the operating company, told the committee at the time that without 5G the Weymouth area would fall further behind the rest of the country and that the mast would bring a faster and more reliable technology, as well as carrying 4G and 3G signals.