NYC subways to get cell phone service
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It’s tough to get cell service in a subway station, it being underground and all. So when we descend the stairwell into the depths of a city’s public transportation hub, it’s expected to lose all phone service. Which is fine; we once lived without cell phones, so being temporarily without one for the duration of a subway ride shouldn’t be all that burdensome. However, the City of New York feel otherwise. They have commissioned Transit Wireless to wire every subway stop in the city — 227 in all — for cellular and WiFi service. However, it’s not as easy as running some wires and hooking up some routers.
First of all, Transit Wireless, underbidding a consortium led by AT&T, will pay New York City Transit $46.8 million for the rights to do the project. And that’s not even counting the cost to build the network, which has been estimated at between $150 and $200 million. So how is Transit going to recoup those losses?
By signing up cell phone carriers, of course. Cell carriers would have to pay Transit Wireless for the right to have their service available in subway stops. At first glance, it seems totally worth it for cell companies to do this. However, the service will not be available in the subway cars themselves; it is limited to the stations.
How much time does someone spend in a subway station on average? Unless it’s a late-evening affair, probably not that long. For instance, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 9 p.m., we haven’t waited more than five minutes for an A/C/E train. So is it worth it for cell carriers to pay Transit Wireless so their users can enjoy five more minutes of service?
That’s going to be an issue that will be reviewed heavily by each individual carrier. However, if even one major carrier doesn’t sign up — and that’s a red flag for AT&T, who lost the bid to create the network — it might not work out at all.
The service will start at the 23rd Street and 14th Street stops on the A/C/E line, the 14th Street stop on the 1/2/3 line, and the 14th Street on the F/V line. That will be two years out, and if successful, all 227 should be wired within four years.
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