Busjack Posted May 14, 2013 Report Share Posted May 14, 2013 There was a (very shortly posted) Tribune article on the Metra Wi-Fi study. At least it explained that the state law to investigate doing it for free had the intent that some company would sponsor installing wifi on Metra cars, but that didn't happen. The question raised there, and in the Facebook comments is...would Metra riders be willing to pay an extra $1 or so to be able to sign on? And, of course, the article reinforced the Poverty Train point that riders on the south and southwest portions of the system use fewer devices than those on west and northwest suburban trains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted May 14, 2013 Report Share Posted May 14, 2013 My only hope is that it's better than the Amtrak wifi (paid zero and didn't work) and Southwest's wifi (paid $8 and it lagged*) It really depends on the quality and capability of the network. If there is a hope that it's working 90% of the time, then people would be willing to pay the small fee for it. *I wasn't aiming for streaming video, but rather to just Facebook throughout the flight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2013 My only hope is that it's better than the Amtrak wifi (paid zero and didn't work) and Southwest's wifi (paid $8 and it lagged*) It really depends on the quality and capability of the network. If there is a hope that it's working 90% of the time, then people would be willing to pay the small fee for it. Despite the article citing Amtrak as having it, your observation seems to reinforce Metra's point that it is hard to keep a moving train in contact with a cell tower (which the wi-fi base station must do, even if the individual device doesn't). Somehow that hits me as strange, in that railroad rights of way are often used for cell towers, but I guess less than along the Tollway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctrabs74 Posted May 15, 2013 Report Share Posted May 15, 2013 How long ago did you use Wifi on Amtrak? I was on an Amtrak train from Harrisburg, Pa. to Philadelphia last month and the Wifi worked well for me on that train. Interestingly enough, I've had more issues with Wifi on Greyhound buses (they connect, but there seems to be a DSL or other bug on some of the Prevost coaches - specificaly the 86000-series; worked fine for me when I rode an 86100-series bus). The MBTA offers Wifi on it's commuter rail system. I haven't riden that system, so I can't comment on its reliability. My only hope is that it's better than the Amtrak wifi (paid zero and didn't work) and Southwest's wifi (paid $8 and it lagged*) It really depends on the quality and capability of the network. If there is a hope that it's working 90% of the time, then people would be willing to pay the small fee for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2013 According to the Tribune, the Metra board deferred this, citing the eventual $70 million cost, which I suppose is more than the "free" the original legislation contemplated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted May 17, 2013 Report Share Posted May 17, 2013 According to the Tribune, the Metra board deferred this, citing the eventual $70 million cost, which I suppose is more than the "free" the original legislation contemplated. Thank Gosh ! Maybe they can defer it permanently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted May 23, 2013 Report Share Posted May 23, 2013 How long ago did you use Wifi on Amtrak? I was on an Amtrak train from Harrisburg, Pa. to Philadelphia last month and the Wifi worked well for me on that train. Interestingly enough, I've had more issues with Wifi on Greyhound buses (they connect, but there seems to be a DSL or other bug on some of the Prevost coaches - specificaly the 86000-series; worked fine for me when I rode an 86100-series bus). My two round trips on the Lincoln corridor this month. Almost the same result. The 80000 series amrail trains have wifi, but its restrictive and lags. It's almost impossible to just use it (especially by carlinville). I've ridden megabus to Kansas City in my previous life (in grad school), and that actually worked 90% of the time. I'm glad they deferred it. I'd rather not spend the money on a project that's proven to be spotty and not a full guarantee that it'll work out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctrabs74 Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 Speaking of railroads and wi-fi... NJ Transit is about to offer wi-fi on all their commuter rail routes. The resolution is on pp. 17-19 of this board packet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 Speaking of railroads and wi-fi... NJ Transit is about to offer wi-fi on all their commuter rail routes. The resolution is on pp. 17-19 of this board packet. There was a story about this on the TV. The rub, which wasn't mentioned there, was that Cablevision was installing the infrastructure along the tracks, but this area is served by Comcast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 There was a story about this on the TV. The rub, which wasn't mentioned there, was that Cablevision was installing the infrastructure along the tracks, but this area is served by Comcast. In addition, if you were a subscriber to the cable company, I do believe you pay nothing for the cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 In addition, if you were a subscriber to the cable company, I do believe you pay nothing for the cost. A NJ story indicates that Cablevision customers get it free, but charging others has to be worked out. The impression I got from the Metra story is that the hotspot on the train would have to be connected to a cell link, which they called problematic, even though cell towers are often on railroad rights of way. The NJ setup indicates that Cablevision is installing infrastructure (similar to what CTA has in the subways?) along the tracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctrabs74 Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 There was a story about this on the TV. The rub, which wasn't mentioned there, was that Cablevision was installing the infrastructure along the tracks, but this area is served by Comcast. Cablevision, incidentially, also owns Madison Square Garden, the Knicks and NY Rangers. Which is more than enough reason for me to hate their guts, but that's another story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.