Train connectivity - is passenger Wi-Fi too linked to rail portals' needs?

This post originally appeared on Oct 5 on my LinkedIn feed, which is now my main platform for both short posts and longer-form articles. It can be found here, along with the comment stream. Please follow / connect to me on LinkedIn, to receive regular updates (about 1-3 / week)

It's always interesting to attend non-telecom industry events. Too often, we breathe our own smoke. Visiting another sector's conferences gives better perspective. Often, networks are less important than we imagine for "verticals".

Yesterday I chaired the Connectivity stream of the World Passenger Festival conference in Vienna, an event primarily for the rail industry, plus other forms of transport mobility. The speakers in my breakout covered Wi-Fi access onboard trains and at stations, plus how to manage video traffic. 5G was covered for on-train network backhaul, neutral-host provision and possible use-cases like AR-enabled tourism & urban mobility V2X safety for buses and bikes.

The rest of the conference and show floor was about passenger experiences more generally. Ticketing, sleeper trains, coordination with other types of transport, train-based tourism and so on. Plenty of talk about apps and "transformation" more broadly, but the network wasn't a priority.

There was also a rather muddled main-stage keynote on #5G by Accenture, with 2018-era references to millisecond latencies, network slicing and autonomous vehicles. It conflated normal MNO 5G with the long-promised critical-comms rail variant #FRMCS and bizarrely suggested they would coexist on converged, virtualised networks. A later chat on their booth with a more knowledgeable colleague gave a lot more clarity & agreement on the realities & drivers of operational connectivity for future rail - especially enabling ECTS (European Train Control System) for higher capacity on rail networks.

The rail industry is at the apex of a trend I discussed in a recent newsletter article and post - the need for customers to have reliable access to smartphone apps for ticketing, journey-planning, at-seat entertainment and catering etc. Travellers need to download passes, make payments and use QR codes.

This explains why so much of the on-train #WiFi strategy is linked to apps and portals, and much less to general wireless infrastructure, whether MNO or dedicated trackside/FRMCS.

Some rail Wi-Fi teams view cellular as a cost (for backhaul) or a rival that stops passengers seeing the portal and info/monetisation offers, when they directly access the Internet from phones. They filter or cache video use to reduce cost and congestion. One even tries to dissuade passengers from using cellular, to save 4G/5G network capacity for the train!

In my view, there is both too much "joined-up" thinking and too little. It's either 5G maximalism ("we don't need Wi-Fi on trains") or it directly links connectivity to the rail operator's own priorities, rather than passengers' real Internet access needs and expectations.

What is needed is integration in the right places and layers. Shared trackside masts and fibre, plus hybrid connectivity to trains from public 5G, trackside dedicated networks (including #private5G) and satellite, delivering good, neutral, fast on-train Wi-Fi AND cellular for passengers.

 

Connectivity on trains is hard - but both Wi-Fi and cellular need to be provided for passengers

This post originally appeared on May 24 on my LinkedIn feed, which is now my main platform for both short posts and longer-form articles. It can be found here, along with the comment stream. Please follow / connect to me on LinkedIn, to receive regular updates (about 1-3 / week)

 There have been recent headlines about the possible ending of on-train passenger #WiFi services in the UK. It is deeply controversial.

Apparently the Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom has insisted rail WiFi must be "justified financially". It's unclear if that means by extra ticket sales, higher customer satisfaction, or the use of WiFi for #train operational functions like cameras and wireless payment terminals.

I hope it's not referring to so-called "monetisation" by customers paying for WiFi, or being served adverts. On trains, WiFi is a basic amenity, like toilets or power sockets.

That said, train WiFi in the UK is often problematic. It uses clunky captive portals, and often old access points & slow/patchy 4G backhaul. It often fails to work well, or at all. It sometimes blocks video or VPNs. By contrast, in-station WiFi is run separately - and often much better.

Public cellular coverage on the rail network is also poor. Many rail lines run through cuttings and tunnels with limited room for trackside infrastructure & poor lines-of-sight to cell towers. The recent Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Wireless Infrastructure Strategy highlighted poor #railway #wireless coverage & pushed for regular monitoring and access to trackside fibre.
 
What should DfT, DSIT, Network Rail, Train Operating Companies and the future restructured Great British Railways Transition Team (GBRTT) do?
 
- Recognise both cellular & WiFi are essential for passengers, especially on long-distance trains where laptops are common
- Understand that cellular - especially #5G - has problems with signals reaching inside train carriages
- Don't underestimate forecasts for future data use. Add in uplink as well as downlink, and think about latency. Trains may need 1-5 Gbps in the medium term, via a mix of cellular & WiFi.
- Ensure on-train WiFi is easy to use & easily-upgraded. No captive portals, no “monetisation” with ads/data capture & a clear roadmap for regular upgrades. No blocking of any apps, especially VPNs and video. Apply Net Neutrality rules.
- Federation or roaming between on-train & station WiFi systems, extending to smart cities & metro bus/train/tram WiFi over time
- Easier access for MNOs / #neutralhosts to build trackside or near-track infrastructure & use gantries & fibre assets
- Decouple passenger connectivity needs from future critical #FRMCS deployment. They have different timing/cadence & investment cases
- Look at trackside 5G neutral host networks delivered with “excess” spectrum from any future 4-3 merger of MNOs
- Insist on-train gateways are modular & can use a dynamic mix of public 5G, trackside wireless & eventually satellite in remote areas. Ensure they are easily upgradeable without trains being taken out of service
- Upgrade on-train signal repeaters & look at window-etching for better outdoor-to-indoor performance

Note: I wrote this on WiFi on a train back to London from this week’s Wi-Fi NOW conference.