Wi-Fi and enhanced cell service has been installed at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) Jamaica Station.
Designed, installed and managed by Boingo Wireless, Wi-Fi and cellular service are now live and add coverage to the Jamaica Station platforms, waiting room and the Sutphin Boulevard underpass. The initial wireless carrier providing service for Jamaica Station through this new system will be Verizon, with T-Mobile and AT&T coming online over the next several months.
The new Wi-Fi and cellular service will enable customers to better use the new, seamless TrainTime app. The new TrainTime app includes schedule and train-tracking information for both LIRR and Metro-North, along with the ticket-buying functionality of MTA eTix.
“Any day that we can make our customers’ journeys better is a good day,” said Metro-North Railroad President and LIRR Interim President Catherine Rinaldi. “By adding Wi-Fi and improving cellular coverage at Jamaica Station, we are providing a better customer experience and critically, making the new TrainTime app even more accessible for mobile ticketing.”
Boingo was selected through a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) process by the MTA as the neutral host provider for the LIRR Atlantic Branch to bring public-facing wireless connectivity across platforms and tunnels. The Atlantic Branch encompasses LIRR’s Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn, Jamaica Station in Queens and the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel that connects the two locations. Boingo’s networks for LIRR are built and managed at no cost to the MTA and are designed to generate long-term revenue for the authority with maximum cellular carrier participation. The installation of Wi-Fi at Jamaica Station comes after Boingo brought cellular coverage to the LIRR Atlantic Branch Terminal and tunnels.
“For over 20 years Boingo has proudly served the people of New York by keeping them connected at transit hubs, tunnels, airports, retail locations, office buildings and high-rise developments—from the World Trade Center Oculus, JFK, LaGuardia and Newark to the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels, Port Authority Bus Terminal and more,” said Boingo CEO Mike Finley. “Launching cellular and Wi-Fi networks at Jamaica Station, one of the busiest stations in North America, is part of Boingo’s commitment to support digital transformation throughout the city and help world-class organizations like the MTA meet growing mobile connectivity demands.”
Boingo networks leverage a neutral host model that manages carrier cellular networks and can deploy a range of wireless technologies across 5G, LTE, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi 6/6E, IoT and private networks under one managed platform. Verizon Wireless will begin providing service immediately through this system, with T-Mobile planned for this fall and AT&T scheduled for early 2023.
