Vodafone announce start of 3G switch off in Chichester

Did you know that less than 2% of data is used on the 3G network across the UK? Vodafone has recently announced that they will start to switch off its legacy 3G network across the South Central region in the next few weeks. 

The announcement follows a customer awareness campaign which started in January 2022, and the development of significant network improvements across the area in recent years. This includes the introduction of 5G in Chichester.

Other UK mobile network operators have also confirmed to the Government that they do not intend to offer 2G or 3G mobile networks past 2033. The latest phase follows other ‘successful’ 3G switch-offs in other UK locations.

The remainder of the UK will follow by the end of February 2024.   The programme means the radio spectrum currently allocated for 3G can be used to strengthen 4G and 5G services further across the UK.  

Vodafone’s 2G network, which currently covers over 99% of the UK population, will remain for calls, texts and several IoT services for the time being, alongside services such as 4G Calling which uses the their network to make and receive calls.

Vodafone’s UK Chief Network Officer, Andrea Dona, said: “Our 3G switch-off programme has gone extremely well so far.  As a result of our ongoing network improvements, data traffic has declined over the last few years with less than 2% of the data used on our network being on 3G.

"This means we can start to redeploy its remaining spectrum to our 4G and 5G services, ultimately leading to stronger and faster coverage for more parts of the UK.  Good news for both our customers but also the wider UK economy. 

"At the same time, with modern networks being much more energy efficient, its retirement is also an important step forward for us reaching  Net Zero for our UK operation by 2027.  As we continue to focus on building our reliable award-winning network, now really is the time to say goodbye to 3G.”