Amtrak jumps aboard the Wi-Fi train

Telecommunications Americas, March, 2004 by Sue O'Keefe

Wi-Fi is available in airports, coffee shops, fast food restaurants and hotels, so why not train stations? That's what Amtrak thought and has signed a deal with AT & T Wireless to deploy Wi-Fi in six of the railroad's busiest train stations along the Northeast Corridor: Boston Route 128 Station, Providence, New York Penn Station, Philadelphia 30th Street Station, Wilmington and Baltimore Penn Station.

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"Amtrak is excited to be able to offer our customers another way to meld their busy schedules and the work they need to get done. Our arrangement with a proven wireless carrier such as AT & T Wireless is just the thing to help keep Amtrak travelers and station visitors connected to their e-mail and the Internet," said Sally Bellet, vice president of real estate development for Amtrak.

Anyone with a Wi-Fi-enabled laptop or PDA can access the system, which is scheduled to be operational by summer. AT & T Wireless customers simply need to log onto the network using a Wi-Fi-enabled laptop or PDA. Non-AT & T Wireless customers can connect to the Wi-Fi service via credit card for $9.99 for a 24-hour period at that same station. According to Amtrak, AT & T Wireless is covering the entire cost of deployment, operations and maintenance.