Record-breaking cellphone traffic recorded in eclipse path of totality cities in Ontario and Quebec

As thousands of people flocked to see and photograph the eclipse across Ontario, cellphone data surged.

Rogers network saw record-breaking amounts of traffic in communities along the path of totality yesterday (April 8), a Rogers spokesperson tells insauga.com. 

In the months before the eclipse, the City of Niagara Falls made preparations and even declared a state of emergency. There were concerns about record-breaking crowds.

Niagara Falls warned there could be disruption to cellphone service.

“As with any large event that brings high levels of visitation into a concentrated area, it is possible that cell signal may be compromised,” the City of Niagara Falls wrote on its website.

Large cellphone providers Rogers and Bell prepared for a surge in usage by optimizing for larger groups of people and bringing in portable mobile towers to increase capacity.

Rogers said they saw cellphone usage increase in key areas on Monday at totality (compared to volumes from Monday, March 25 as a benchmark).

Rogers processed five times more 5G data.  

Network usage increased six times in Niagara Falls, two times in Kingston and a whopping eight times in Montreal.

“At totality, Rogers customers sent 3x more texts with photos or videos compared to average volumes,” the cell provider said.

Call completion volumes in key areas were within a normal range, even during peak traffic hours, Rogers added. 

The Bell network saw five times the volume in high-traffic areas including Niagara, Hamilton, Toronto, Montreal, Sherbrooke, Brockville, Kingston, Québec City.

“Thanks to the measures we had put in place ahead of time, our network continued to run optimally,” a Bell spokesperson tells insauga.com.

Bell brought in a portable cell on wheels, known as a COW, in Niagara Falls to ensure uninterrupted service.

Rogers said their network team spent 7,500 total hours preparing for the eclipse.

Photos: Karen Longwell