Bureau of Meteorology Faces Backlash Over Website Redesign

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) is under scrutiny following the launch of its redesigned website, which has drawn criticism from farmers and politicians for missing or difficult-to-find features. The new site, introduced just over a week ago, has prompted significant backlash, leading to official calls for modifications.

The BoM has been working on this overhaul since 2019, at a cost of $4.1 million, primarily to address vulnerabilities revealed by a serious cyber intrusion in 2015. Officials describe the previous site as “beloved,” yet they argue it was outdated and in need of a comprehensive update to meet modern accessibility and mobile-friendly standards.

Feedback from users during a 16-month beta testing phase was incorporated into the new design, yet some critics, including David Littleproud, leader of the Nationals party, have suggested that farmers should have been consulted more thoroughly. The National Farmers’ Federation declined to provide a comment on the redesign.

Concerns have arisen over the timing of the launch, coinciding with severe weather events affecting southeastern Australia. Littleproud highlighted specific issues reported by local residents, such as the inability to enter GPS coordinates for property searches, which restricts users to searching by town or postcode. Another local resident expressed frustration over not being able to view heavy rainfall measurements for their property, describing the experience as “very complicated and very stressful.”

On Wednesday, BoM’s acting chief executive, Dr. Peter Stone, acknowledged the issues raised and apologized for the user experience challenges. In addressing the radar functionality, he clarified that it “provides one view of the current weather situation” but does not replace the agency’s weather warnings, which are issued by expert meteorologists ahead of severe weather events.

The federal environment minister, Murray Watt, has directed the BoM to implement changes in response to the feedback received. While the agency aims to improve the new site swiftly, users unhappy with the redesign can still access the old website, which has been kept operational to ensure continuity while enhancements are made.

Despite the initial backlash, the BoM is optimistic about turning user sentiment around. Dr. Stone pointed out that similar situations have occurred previously, noting a dip in user satisfaction when the BoM’s weather app relaunched in 2020. That app has since regained its popularity.

With the BoM’s website receiving approximately 2.6 billion visits annually, the agency anticipates a wealth of feedback as it navigates this transition. As adjustments are made, BoM officials encourage users to continue sharing their experiences to help refine the new platform.