In Massachusetts, Wi-Fi is for the Trains
1 February 2008The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has announced that it will be testing Wi-Fi on one of its train lines that carries about 18,000 passengers on a typical weekday.
The Worcester-Framingham line is about 45 miles long and runs between Boston and Worcester in central Massachusetts. The Wi-Fi test will let any Wi-Fi enabled device access the Internet, though the MTBA warns the bandwidth will be limited during the testing.
All 41 trains that run on this line on week-days will have at least one Wi-Fi enabled coach and some other lines may see Wi-Fi access if any of these trains are moved to help alleviate congestion. The MTBA is encouraging users to do simple surfing and e-mail, asks users not to access any inappropriate content since it is a public space and warns that train conductors are not there for tech support.
This project comes from the action of Timothy Murray, current lieutenant governor and former mayor of Worcester. Murray was an advocate of rampant Wi-Fi connectivity feeling it would improve the productivity and enjoyment of the workforce throughout Massachusetts.
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