Two potential suppliers of rail services into London have been told they must create room for “investment in innovation”, including the provision of Wi-Fi, in their proposals.
Telegraph.co.uk transport editor David Millward says two unnamed companies are bidding for contracts to run two key rail services into the capital.
Although free wireless mobile internet tends to be a luxury made only available to first-class passengers, the government is still looking for new carriages to contain the technology with the hope of this becoming a standard feature on all services
Among some of the other requirements, the companies will be expected to introduce smart ticketing, which allows people to buy part time season tickets rather than full passes.
However, Anthony Smith, chief executive of consumer watchdog Passenger Focus, says the provision of Wi-Fi will be the biggest coup for rail users.
“Passengers increasingly expect to be able to connect to Wi-Fi and to get a decent mobile signal, to make the most out of their travel time, so we would anticipate this being in the specifications,” he told i4u.com.
The move comes in light of Maria Eagle, Labour’s transport spokesman, saying that all train operators will be told to offer Wi-Fi to their passengers, labelling it a necessity, not a luxury.
