Bell and Virgin Plus roll out Extended Coverage, with Priority Network Access to follow
Key points
- Bell is rolling out Extended Coverage to Bell and Virgin Plus customers this week, filling gaps in rural areas, on highways and along routes between cities.
- Phones connect automatically and show Bell-EXT or Virgin-EXT. There is no add-on to buy, no settings to change and no extra roaming fees.
- Extended Coverage uses the data, calling and texting already in a postpaid plan. It is meant for occasional use, and a call in progress will drop when the phone switches to the extended network.
- Priority Network Access follows by the end of the week for eligible Bell premium rate plans only, not Virgin Plus. It aims to keep speeds steadier in crowded places such as stadiums, festivals and transit hubs.
- Rogers launched its own priority access feature in April 2026 for customers on its priciest plan, and has offered extended coverage for a little over a decade.
Bell is rolling out Extended Coverage to Bell and Virgin Plus customers this week. The feature is meant to fill in rural areas, highways and travel routes between major cities where coverage was limited or missing. Bell also says Priority Network Access will arrive by the end of the week for eligible Bell plans.
Extended Coverage works automatically. When a phone connects, it shows Bell-EXT or Virgin-EXT, and customers do not need to buy an add-on or change anything. Bell says there are no extra roaming fees. It does not add a separate bucket of data, though. Postpaid customers use the calling, texting and data already in their plan. Bell describes the feature as meant for occasional use, with most usage staying on its own network.
There are limits. An active call will drop when the phone switches to Bell-EXT, so customers need to call again once connected. Customers on 3G devices will need to upgrade. Bell has a map showing where Extended Coverage is available now and where it will expand, so not every dead zone is necessarily covered.
Priority Network Access is planned for eligible Bell premium rate plans. Bell announced it for Bell customers, not Virgin Plus. It works at the network level without any action from the customer. It is designed to give faster, more consistent data when networks are congested, such as at stadiums, music festivals, transit hubs and busy downtown areas.
Neither feature is new in Canada. Rogers launched its own priority access in April 2026 for customers on its most expensive plan, and has offered extended coverage for just over a decade. The Bell announcement comes as the CRTC, Canada’s telecom regulator, pushes for more accurate cellphone coverage maps.
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