Legislation paving the way for the roll-out of super fast 5G internet services in the Netherlands requires Dutch local authorities to cooperate with the placement of thousands of small antennas on buildings, on lamp posts and on traffic lights.

Councils will be forced to comply to ensure that companies ‘can offer trend-setting services’ such as self-driving cars, the AD reported.

5G antennas, known as small cells, have already been placed on some buildings but will become much more visible in the run-up to 2022, when 5G services are due to start up on a wide scale.

There are currently some 46,000 mobile antennas in the Netherlands, but tens of thousands more are likely to be added to the total, the AD said.

5G uses higher frequency waves than earlier mobile networks and these waves travel shorter distances in urban spaces. This means the networks require more transmitters, closer to ground level.

Despite fears that the presence of so many antennas could have an impact on public health, ministers say there is no evidence that this is the case, the paper said. Nevertheless, the Dutch telecoms agency will continue to monitor exposure to electro-magnetic radiation.

Ministers are due to publish the guidelines for companies wishing to provide 5G services in the Netherlands later this year.