Wi-fi on track for success
We’ve reported on wi-fi for trains before, but now it seems it’s actually happening. In an article for The Guardian, Sean Dodson reports about his experiences of using wireless technology onboard a GNER train from York to London.
And guess what, it actually works. Sean was able to surf the net and send the story live to Guardian towers thanks to a satellite dish on top of a GNER restaurant carriage. This connects to the Internet via a range of different networks and then distributes the coverage to the carriage. Although the connection slows down when the train goes through a tunnel it doesn’t disappear altogether as it would with an ordinary connection and works even at speeds of up to 100mph (not something you have to worry much about on our trains).
The only bad news is that the service, which officially begins on December 1, will only be available to First Class Passengers on the east coast’s mainline – albeit free of charge. It seems the rest of us will have to slum it for a while.
GNER’s wi-fi service is supplied by Icomera, a Swedish company which introduced a similar service in Scandinavia earlier this year to some acclaim. Commuters in Scandi land pay a £6 supplement on top of their usual ticket price for the privilege of surfing wirelessly.
GNER Mobile Office
Icomera
