The Talking Tree: AT&T Expands Local Network

One pine tree is different from all the other trees in Newark — but it wouldn’t be clear at first glance.

Only during close examination does the lush pine transform into what it is: a man-made cell phone tower.

The synthetic tree, located on the corner of Cedar and Newark boulevards behind , is the latest in AT&T’s effort to upgrade its information system in the Tri-City area.

It is one of nine cell sites the company has added to its capacity throughout Southern Alameda County in locations including Union City, Fremont and Hayward.

The telecommunications company is also upgrading its cell sites with fiber optics and Ethernet that connect back to the central switching facilities, quickening 4G network speeds. 

“People don’t use their phones to just simply talk anymore. Smartphones are to students now what a pen and paper used to be. With all this added use, the system needs a higher capacity. It’s like adding lanes to a highway to allow traffic to flow faster,” said AT&T’s director of corporate communications, John Britton, during a media tour at the Newark site on Wednesday.

Between 2008 and 2010, AT&T has invested approximately $775 million on its wireless network in the Bay Area. AT&T representative said these expensive and extensive upgrades are necessary as phones become more than just devices for conversation. 

“As people use their phones for other things than just talking, such as accessing their ‘cloud’, there needs to be higher capacity for traffic,” Britton said. 

Another reason for updating the network is for public safety: 78 percent of all 9-1-1 calls are made from wireless phones, Britton said.