Free WiFi goes live on the Tube
Virgin Media activates its wireless internet service at London Underground stations... but it won't actually work in the tunnels.
There’ve been plenty of Olympic worries when it comes to both finance and service provision, but Virgin Media’s roll-out of wireless internet on the London Underground at least is running according to schedule.
Today, WiFi connections at King’s Cross and Warren Street stations go live, to be followed by Oxford Circus and Green Park tomorrow and joined by Euston and Victoria on the 8th to provide complete WiFi support across a significant section of the Victoria Line. Through the rest of June and July, the wireless internet service will be rolled out across a total of 80 stations, to rise to 120 by the end of the year.
However, this doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to talk on Skype of even consistently play Diablo 3 as you whizz through the tunnels. According to Virgin, “passengers will be able to get online throughout connected London Underground stations: from the ticket hall, on the escalators and on the platforms. Users will be also connected whilst on a train in a platform but WiFi will not work in London Underground tunnels”.
As we reported in March, the service will remain free this summer but if you want to use it to get online after that, you’ll have to switch to one of Virgin’s Pay As You Go and subscription-based payment models.However, everyone will still be able to connect to get “up-to-the-minute TfL travel news and great content from Virgin Media’s WiFi partners Time Out, Spotify and MyMovies.net”. You won’t, however, be able to access any adult content via the network.