WiFi usage on train triples - when free

March 6th, 2008, BWCS staff

Free WiFi access for passengers on the UK's East Coast main line has lead to a tripling in usage, according to reports from train operator National Express. The company, which inherited the pioneering system developed by Icomera and previous franchise incumbent, GNER, made "free WiFi for all travellers" an important part of their bid to take over services on the routes. Since taking the wheel, National Express reports that volume has jumped from 30,000 on-board WiFi users a month to over 100,000 in January of this year alone.

Previously the service had only been free in First Class, the majority of passengers were required to pay £4.95 for an hour's access to the Internet. The move by National Express will clearly put pressure on other operators to scrap payment charges.

Speaking to the press, Alan Hyde, head of communications at National Express East Coast said, "We expect to see even bigger increases in the future, as more of our customers switch on to the benefits of being able to work - or maybe just enjoy a leisurely browse of the internet - while travelling at high speed."

According to figures from the rail company, 85% of laptop-toting passengers opt to use the free service at some point during their journey along the East Coast. Although there are few hard statistics to support its view, the company believes there is little doubt that free WiFi will increase use of its train services by business travelers as it allows them to extend their working day, or travel later in to the office as they can effectively work on the trains.

For more information

Icomera
Jan Lindberg, Sales manager
+46-733-10 85 57

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