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Any D.C. resident with a laptop who regularly makes a trip to New York or Philadelphia on Amtrak has probably longed for wireless internet access on their journeys. On Monday, Amtrak announced it has installed wireless internet, but just in their stations. Sadly it's not awesome, free internet, but regular old T-Mobile Hot Spots, which costs money. The hot spots will be available at Union Station, Baltimore Penn Station, Wilmington Station in Delaware, Philadelphia 30th Street Station and New York Penn Station.
Well, we suppose it's something. It's always seemed beyond silly that you couldn't even check your email if you wanted to while you wait for a train to begin boarding in Union Station. Still, it would be nice if we had also heard something about plans to install the internet on the trains themselves. Heck, if a bus can pull it off, why can't the trains? But of course, we all know that if wishes were Amtrak trains, beggars would arrive late and be overcharged.
Photo by iceman882
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It's amazing how entitled people feel to amenities such as WiFi on a train, bus, or (now) airplane. Remember just a few years ago, say, 2001? Nobody had WiFi, very few had cellphones. We got by. Read a book.
Um, I’m 99.999% certain that Amtrak has been providing charged wifi access at these stations for a couple of years now - and advertising it. I think the press release was to tell customers that they’ve now contracted T-mobile to provide the service.
'Very few' had cellphones in 2001? I don't think 130 million is 'very few'.
From that press release:
Amtrak provides intercity passenger rail services to more than 500 destinations in 46 states on a 22,000-mile route system.
Okay, so they probably don't have rail service in Alaska and Hawaii. But what are the other two states that aren't serviced by Amtrak?
Alright, alright, I'll research this on my own.
According to wikipedia:
The only states that are not served by Amtrak are Hawaii (which is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean), Alaska (which is served by the Alaska Railroad) and South Dakota (although in years past there was service by the Milwaukee Road to South Dakota, however Amtrak has never instituted any service to there). Wyoming lost rail service in the 1997 cuts, but is still served by Amtrak's Thruway Motorcoaches.
I was gonna guess North Dakota, but I would have been wrong. I would like to personally apologize to North Dakota.
guest guest, I'm pretty sure that's not right. This is from NBC4: "Spokeswoman Tracy Connell said some locations of the Club Acela first-class lounge had wireless, but this is the first time it has been made available throughout the stations."
Maybe you were able to pick up a signal in Union Station because you were near the First Class lounge? I know I've always had trouble getting the Internet there, as well as in Penn Station and 30th Street Station.
here it is
Not your fault, Sommer. The MSM outlets seem to be under the same impression. I've been in these stations in the past couple of years. I've seen the advertisements. I've tried to log on, but ditched the effort after I saw that they were charging $9.
Perhaps it used to be available, but was then canceled or something because nobody wanted to pay for what they can usually find for free.
I guess it really isn't important, and it is weird that spokesperson stated that. I dunno... and sorry for being obnoxious over something this unimportant. It's just kind of weird to see when I've experienced the opposite.
Huh, that is definitely interesting. I wonder if it was a big flop and they canceled the AT&T contract at some point. Thanks for the link.
I'd like to see Amtrak bring Al Gore on as CTO. That way he could invent internet on trains and we wouldn't need to be having this conversation right now.
I use the internet on the train all the way to NYC, but do it tethering through my cell phone via bluetooth :-P
gotta love EDGE. I read the paper and check my email on my Blackberry the whole way.
I've always thought the WiFi at the Philadelphia 30th Street Station was free. I'd prefer WiFi on the train over the station. I've taken the DC2NY bus and their wireless works great!
I had trouble getting my data packet carrier pigeons set up to handle my internet communications. Not only do they have to know where the train is going to be, but they also have to know where I am on the train and therefore whose head not to crap on as they fly through the cars. But at least I don't have to pay T-Mobile for the connection.
Seriously though, these days people are expected to be on call for their jobs 24-7 (ok, at least most of their waking hours) via e-mail, cell phone, blackberry, etc...so WiFi is not really too much to ask for given how much of Amtrak's northeast corridor business is buttressed by commuter traffic. Anyone who's ever set up a wireless network for themselves knows it's a relatively simple and inexpensive system. For an entire train, it'd only take one wireless connection like a cell phone would have, and maybe one or two wireless routers per car ($40 each retail). That's about $1-2 per passenger, tops. So even if Amtrak had to charge, they could provide a lot better service to their riders than T-Mobile does, and for less. And letting passengers distract themselves on YouTube would help take their minds off derailments and such.
Screw the Blackberry and cellphones. I stayed in contact with the office on the train to NYC using two tin cans and about 1,000 miles of yarn. You all a bunch a suckas with your *bleep bleep* and *bloop bloop*. Holla!
I prefer to listen to the voices in my head while traveling. They haven't steered me wrong yet! Uh oh ... getting another call ... gotta' go.
Amtrak should have free WIFI. They suck up my tax dollars as it is (actually, I'm a big proponent of Amtrak even though they lose money), so I think I am in fact entitled to free Wifi when I ride.
If they were a private entity, then maybe I'd feel different. But they aren't. It's pissant little nickel-and-dime schemes like charging for Wifi that make people angry at Amtrak.
That, and the fact that the Union Station folks can't seem to run a taxi stand to save their lives. Yes, I know, not technically Amtrak (I don't think), but I thought I'd rant anyway.
I mean, really, folks, you have a line of 100 people waiting for cabs, and you have a system where only one cab creeps up at a time? How stupid can this get?
Just get a phone card or whatever it is they call it. My mother has one where she puts in her computer and can get internet anywhere. Anyone know what I'm talking about or am I just crazy?
avtst
Welcome to 2002 Amtrak. It needs to realize travelers need more incentives to use its product. Taking it to Boston costs more than flying there and takes longer than driving.