Skip to main content

Queensland providing free Wi-Fi on city trains

In an Australian first, free wireless internet technology will be rolled out on all new Queensland Rail city trains from later this year. The announcement follows a successful Wi-Fi trial and the Queensland government will now spend AU$6.5 million (US$6.98 million) installing the technology in new trains. "The trial has been a huge success, the technology has been installed and is now fully operational on the test-train with customers able to sit, back and take advantage of the free internet on their journe
March 23, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
In an Australian first, free wireless internet technology will be rolled out on all new 4227 Queensland Rail city trains from later this year. The announcement follows a successful Wi-Fi trial and the Queensland government will now spend AU$6.5 million (US$6.98 million) installing the technology in new trains.

"The trial has been a huge success, the technology has been installed and is now fully operational on the test-train with customers able to sit, back and take advantage of the free internet on their journey to and from work" said transport minister Annastacia Palaszczuk. "Installation on the first of 64 new trains will begin in October and we're expecting to have Wi-Fi installed across the entire 160 and 260 series fleet by the end of next year.

According to Queensland Rail CEO Paul Scurrah, "This project isn't only about free internet for our customers, but it also increases our security capacity by allowing live streaming from our CCTV cameras on board the Wi-Fi trains.

The Wi-Fi trial started late last year on one train which travelled across the City network. The trial included tests of 3G coverage capability of internet and CCTV live streaming. There was an average of 228 weekly users on the test train, with more than 5,000 in total during the trial.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • US updates ITS strategy for Connected Vehicle deployment
    March 16, 2015
    Jon Masters looks at the USDOT’s new ITS Strategic Plan for the next five years. Emphasis and direction for the next five years of Government led ITS research in the United States has been framed within a new ITS Strategic Plan. The US Department for Transportation’s (USDOT) ITS Joint Program Office (JPO) published the report at the tail end of 2014 after concluding a two-year ITS industry consultation process. The Plan identifies a vision to transform the way society moves and the ITS JPO’s aim of advancin
  • New riders get onboard the metabustrip
    October 5, 2016
    Bus travel booking is moving into the digital age as David Crawford discovers. A global surge in demand for intercity bus travel is fuelling new initiatives to make it easier for passengers to access information and book via the web by, fo example, using multi-sourced metasearch engines
  • Camera technology a flexible and cost-effective option
    June 7, 2012
    Perceptions of machine vision being an expensive solution are being challenged by developments in both core technologies and ancillaries. Here, Jason Barnes and David Crawford look at the latest developments in the sector. A notable aspect of machine vision is the flexibility it offers in terms of how and how much data is passed around a network. With smart cameras, processing capabilities at the front end mean that only that which is valid need be communicated back to a central processor of any descripti
  • Delivering accurate vehicle identification
    August 1, 2012
    In the Netherlands, TNO, the independent research organisation, has been engaged in a project on behalf of the RDW, the Dutch vehicle registration and licensing authority, intended to look at the feasibility of using electronic means to make vehicle identification more accurate and less susceptible to fraud. Electronic Vehicle Identification (EVI) has been in existence in various forms for several years now but TNO was tasked with finding out whether OnBoard Unit (OBU)-based applications could be complement