Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Wi-Fi to ride California passenger rails

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 14:51:01 -0400

Wi-Fi to ride California passenger rails

By Bob Brewin
AUGUST 12, 2003

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) plans to test onboard
high-speed wireless service this fall on its popular Capitol Corridor intercity
train route linking San Jose and Santa Clara in Silicon Valley with Oakland and
Auburn, near the state capital of Sacramento.

David Anderson, a Caltrans spokesman, said the three-month test will start in
September on the Capitol Corridor route, which he described as "one of the most
successful [passenger] train lines in America." Ridership on the line from July
2002 to July 2003 totaled 1.13 million passengers, a 6.1% increase from the
previous year, Anderson said.
Caltrans funds the operation of the trains, which are run by Amtrak as part of its
national passenger rail system. The Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority
(CCJPA) -- composed of representatives of the eight counties along the train route
-- is responsible for train service management.

Jim Allison, a senior transportation planner at the CCJPA, said the agency decided
to conduct the Wi-Fi test in response to demand from "tech-savvy" riders. The
decision also fits in with the Caltrans philosophy to "always look for ways to
provide better service," he said.

Allison said that PointShot Wireless, an Ottawa-based start-up focused on
providing Wi-Fi service in mobile markets, will provide the equipment for the
Capitol Corridor test. PointShot is also providing the onboard hardware for a
four-month test of Wi-Fi service that began last month on trains operated by Via
Rail Canada in the Montreal-Toronto corridor (see story).

Allison said PointShot will use the same type of technology in California to
transmit signals to and from the Capitol Corridor trains: a satellite-delivered
broadband downlink to an onboard Wi-Fi access point and a lower-speed return link
over a terrestrial cellular network. PointShot officials didn't return phone calls
from Computerworld for comment.
The CCJPA intends to install Wi-Fi hardware in just one of the two-level cars used
on the Capitol Corridors routes, Allison said, with that car cycling throughout
all the stations in the system. The Capitol Corridor offers 12 round trips between
Oakland and Auburn, with four of those round trips continuing on to San Jose from
Oakland.

PointShot is still developing pricing models for the Wi-Fi service, Allison said,
adding that for a portion of the test the service will be free. The CCJPA does,
however, plan to use the test to evaluate customer response and different pricing
models.

Craig Mathias, an analyst at Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass., said pricing will
be key to rider acceptance, with many high-speed wireless services today priced
"too high" to attract many users.  Mathias said he believes a $30 a month price
point for unlimited access is needed to attract a large pool of wireless data
users.

http://www.computerworld.com/mobiletopics/mobile/story/0,10801,83930,00.html?nas=AM-83930

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