Eurotunnel offers mobile telephony in Channel Tunnel

Eurotunnel and the British mobile telephone operators EE and Vodafone have signed a ten year agreement to offer mobile services in the Channel Tunnel. Customers of both operators will have access to 2G and 3G services in the UK to France north tunnel (UK to France). Both EE and Vodafone intend to offer 4G data services throughout the tunnel in the future. This will enable passengers of both Le Shuttle and high speed passenger trains to use their mobile phone or tablet device at any point of the journe
January 9, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Eurotunnel and the British mobile telephone operators EE and 813 Vodafone have signed a ten year agreement to offer mobile services in the Channel Tunnel.  Customers of both operators will have access to 2G and 3G services in the UK to France north tunnel (UK to France).  Both EE and Vodafone intend to offer 4G data services throughout the tunnel in the future.
 
This will enable passengers of both Le Shuttle and high speed passenger trains to use their mobile phone or tablet device at any point of the journey through the Channel Tunnel. The quality of communication will be equivalent to a call made in Paris, London or anywhere above ground.

The news was confirmed and welcomed today by 7510 Axell Wireless, the British company providing the technology using a fibre optic Distributed Antenna System (DAS) to propagate mobile signals, both voice and data, throughout the tunnel.

Ian Brown, CEO of Axell Wireless explained: “Cellular connections in rail transportation are the future. Wireless coverage is the fourth utility – people expect it as a given, wherever they are.”
Networking & Communication Systems

Related Content

  • December 17, 2014
    Communications redundancy increases VMS reliability
    Hybrid communications to variable message signs increase resilience to natural disasters and enable deployment in remote areas, as Alan Allegretto explains. Variable Message Signs (VMSs) are a common sight and a well-proven means to improve public safety on our roads and highways. ITS professionals rank the VMS as second only to interoperable radios as the most important technology to improve effectiveness during emergency incidents and evacuations. Ironically, however, current systems suffer from one criti
    Read More
  • October 31, 2014
    Wi-Fi win-win for mass transit
    David Crawford explores passenger and operator benefits of on-board Wi-Fi Urban commuters’ growing demand for continuous – and reliable - internet connectivity is spurring network operators into the rapid installation of high-grade Wi-Fi access on their surface and underground networks, as well as in their stations. Such moves are often a key part of strategies to maintain and increase ridership levels.
    Read More
  • January 25, 2012
    Anywhere card delivers prepaid contactless ticketing
    David Crawford investigates a far reaching initiative in integrated travel. The Port Authority Transit Corporation (PATCO), an operator of high speed commuter rail in the north eastern US, is not one of the world's best known transit providers. Its 13 stations along a single east-west route (three of them interchanges with other regional commuter lines) handle 40,000 passengers a day, travelling to and from Philadelphia, the US' fifth most populous city.
    Read More
  • May 18, 2012
    High speed surfing in France and Italy
    Two announcements on the same day – from the OCEA Consortium and from Andrew Solutions - have reported overcoming the challenges of internet access in high-speed trains travelling at over 200mph (320km/h) in France and Italy. The technological achievements realised by the consortium have risen to the challenge of ensuring service at high speed in a high voltage electrical environment, and integrating the system's maintenance into the overall maintenance schedules of a high-speed network with no impact on th
    Read More

Highlighted Content