SAN FRANCISCO—T-Mobile filed a lawsuit against the city of San Francisco and its Department of Building Inspection for not responding to its request to upgrade cell cites to 5G.
Due to the coronavirus, the company said it needs to modify and upgrade many of the existing wireless installations due to an increase in demand. They have experienced delays from the city of San Francisco.
T-Mobile stated the modifications needed are “minor,” and often include swapping existing antennas or adding additional equipment to roof installations.
The company indicated it experienced delays for 27 applications submitted to the city between June 2020 and August 2020. According to Cities Today, the US Federal Commission (FCC) requires cities to act on the applications within a 60 timeframe. The city of San Francisco approved 16 of those applications, but 16 remain outstanding.
“Congress and the FCC have sought to eliminate barriers and streamline the regulatory review process to facilitate deployment and modification of wireless communications infrastructure necessary for the efficient creation of new and upgraded wireless networks such as 5G,” T-Mobile explained in the lawsuit.
Verizon and others have been tied to similar legal efforts around the country.
