Photo by Shawn Adams

Baltimore-Washington International Airport has finally caught up with the technological demands of today’s passengers. Today, the airport introduced free wireless Internet access for travelers waiting at its gates.

Previously, Internet access was only available at BWI to people willing to cough up inflated one-day fees for maybe a few hours of use. That level of service still remains as an option featuring greater bandwidth, the airport siad in a press release, but now there will be a free tier of service, too.

For the price of sitting through a brief comercial, travelers will be able to enjoy 45 minutes of Internet access, BWI says in the press release. Not a bad deal, and certainly a better option for the casual user than paying $8 to Boingo.

And the move brings BWI up to speed with its regional competitors. Reagan Washington National and Dulles International added free wifi last year. It should also help legitimize BWI’s standing in a PC World ranking of the nation’s “techiest” airports. Free wireless Internet is a nice addition to those handy USB chargers embedded in the seats next to the Southwest gates.