MTA Expands Wireless Service to 40 More Stations

The Metropolitan Transit Authority is rolling out a new wave of cell and Wi-Fi service to subway stations in Manhattan and, for the first time, Queens.

The expansion is the second phase of a seven-part plan to connect the city's network of stations.  In this stage, 11 wireless-enabled stations in Manhattan and 29 in Queens will be added, including hubs at Grand Central-42nd St, Herald Square, Court Square, and Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Ave.

Early last year, an initial phase brought 36 stations online in the Upper West Side and parts of Midtown. All 277 underground stations are expected to be retrofitted for wireless by 2017.

Unveiling the service in the Court Square Station in Long Island City, Queens, officials from the MTA and major wireless providers emphasized the convenience and safety improvements brought by the addition of wireless to the 110-year-old subway system.

“It’s a massive public safety support network,” said William Bayne, CEO of Transit Wireless, the company installing the service. “Access to 9-1-1 as we commission these stations is a big part of what we’re doing.”

William Wheeler, the MTA’s special projects and planning director, added that the plan was also a response to a younger, tech-savvy subway rider.

“We’ve learned that to really keep up with our customers needs, we absolutely have to arm the system with the highest technology possible,” he said.

Work is underway on third phase of the project which will retrofit 39 stations in lower and upper Manhattan this spring. That will bring the total number of wireless-enabled stations to 105.