WiFi Rail has posted a press release, detailing the construction of a WiFi network that can be used by commuters on San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) trains.
Although the network will not be fully complete until 2010, WiFi Rail states that "four downtown San Francisco stations and some segments of the tunnels are already fully functional, and have been providing premium service free to subscribers for the past year". The release indicates that "speeds in excess of 15Mbps [are available] on trains moving 81 miles-per-hour".
WiFi Rail doesn't say whether or not they will expand their services to other trains, but it's a strong possibility, and maybe even being expanded to other means of transportation. Interestingly, WiFi Rail notes that "approximately 71% of commuter rail travelers carry a laptop, PDA or WiFi capable device" and also that annual growth for such devices has been projected at 1300% by the year 2010. This is incredible growth, but also shows why companies are so keen to get in first on this area of business.
Currently, there are no mentions of pricing, although Engadget has been told that subscriptions will be available on a daily, monthly or yearly basis.
1 Comment - Add comment