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The mobile operator says the upgrades will help facilitate the rollout of electric vehicles across the country
Virgin Media O2 (O2) has announced 4G and 5G coverage improvements on more than 40 major UK motorways and A roads, spanning almost 600 miles. The improvements cover routes including the M1 (London to Leeds), M4 (London to Bristol), M6 (Coventry to Carlisle), and M8 (Glasgow to Edinburgh).
The improvements include the improvement of 4G at over 300 mobile sites and construction more than 330 new 5G sites along these key transport routes.
This initiative forms part of O2’s £700 million Mobile Transformation Plan, which broadly targets enhancing 5G and 4G network coverage across the UK, including dense urban centres, transport hubs, stadiums, and major roads. The operator plans to extend similar enhancements to other key routes such as the A14 (Rugby to Ipswich), M20 (London to Folkestone), and A75 (Gretna to Stranraer) in the future.
In tandem with these upgrades, O2 has expanded its 5G Standalone (5G SA) network to cover over 70% of the UK population, enabling faster speeds, lower latency, and broader outdoor network coverage in 500 towns and cities, a move designed to future-proof connectivity standards nationwide.
O2 is positioning the upgrades as a key enabler for the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). National polling conducted by the operator revealed that 76% of EV drivers are concerned about losing mobile connectivity, which can hinder their ability to locate and pay for public charging points. This anxiety about signal reliability even surpasses ‘range anxiety’, the worry about depleting battery before reaching a charger, which affects 68% of EV drivers.
O2’s press release also notes that the EV charging company Believ – backed by O2’s owner Liberty Global – is concurrently deploying up to 30,000 new public charging points across the UK, including in areas where O2 has enhanced mobile coverage.
“Connectivity underpins a huge part of the driving experience today, but particularly for EVs. By optimising coverage on more than 40 motorways and A roads as part of our £700 million investment in our Mobile Transformation Plan, we’re helping make every journey safer and more reliable. Alongside Believ’s new charging points, this is about removing barriers so more people can make the switch to electric with confidence,” said Jeanie York, Chief Technology Officer at Virgin Media O2.
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