News: Wi-Fi for London Underground stations for the Olympics

WiFi hotspots are to be set up in London’s Underground, which is managed by Transport for London. Plans are to
have WiFi in many of its stations in time for the 2012 Olympics. TFl are in the final stages of contracting with a service provider to put Wi-Fi hotspots in 120 of the roughly 270 stations. According to a tender document, customers will be able to access “real-time travel information, news, sports and entertainment” for free, and would pay extra for full internet access. The annoucement for the service provider will be done in early spring, according to a TFL spokesman It will provide plenty of time to get the system running by the games.
BT openzone launched a test program at the charing cross station in late 2010, the service was free to BT subscribers, and could be accessed by anyone for a fee. The WiFi may be up and running in time, however there is slim hopes for an actual mobile network on the Tube. A similar plan was discarded last year.