Every day, ancient BART cars carry the Bay Area’s their technologically-inclined citizens with unfulfilled, old promises of Wi-Fi. But officials say that will be changing by next month, as a $3-per-hour Wi-Fi infrastructure’s expected to be completed for passengers between Oakland and SF.
As the Chron reports, it’s been almost 2 1/2 years since BART partnered with Sacramento’s WiFi Rail to allow riders internet access while riding the transit system. Though a signal does exist, most strongly in the 20 cars with grey, fin-shaped antennas, the Chron says that in their experience connectivity is weak, spotty, and inconsistent.
According to WiFi Rail’s chief executive, Cooper Lee, the spotty coverage and lack of service is due to delays from changes in the plan, but that the company expects to have complete service for all riders from SF to Oakland by September.
At that point, reports the Chron, the company hopes to start charging for the service: $6 for two hours, $9 for a day, $30 for a month, or $300 for the year. A free (to riders) ad-supported option is also expected to be available.
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