> > http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/11/19/MNGF2FR6C11.DTL > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > Saturday, November 19, 2005 (SF Chronicle) > Underground, but not unconnected -- BART offers wireless service to riders > Michael Cabanatuan, Chronicle Staff Writer > > > BART has become the first transit system in the nation to offer wireless > communication to all passengers on its trains underground, putting an end > to miles of technological isolation for multitasking commuters with cell > phones glued to their ears, Blackberry devices stuck in their palms and > computers perched on their laps. > "The goal we have is to completely wire 100 percent of the underground so > a passenger (on a wireless device) wouldn't know if they were above ground > or underground," said Chuck Rae, BART's manager of telecommunications > revenue. "It would be seamless." > Some commuters riding under Market Street in San Francisco already are > yakking on their phones, surfing the Web and sending e-mail. Within weeks, > most passengers should be able to use wireless devices under San Francisco > to phone in a pizza order on their way home. > "With the technology (making it possible), why should we go without it?" > teacher Bo Conley said Thursday on her way home to Hayward. "It's a bit of > freedom to be able to call out. What if there was a disaster? It's a > safety issue." > Contractors recently wired the subways from the west end of the Transbay > Tube to the Civic Center Station. Downtown Oakland is probably next, > followed by Civic Center to Balboa Park, the Transbay Tube, the Berkeley > hills tunnel and the Berkeley subway. The wireless companies will > determine the timetable. > Five of the Bay Area's six wireless companies have signed up to use the > system, Rae said, and the sixth is in negotiations. The arrangement will > generate hundreds of thousands of dollars, and eventually millions, for > BART. > When BART first broached the idea in mid-2001 of wiring its nether regions > for wireless reception, many passengers squawked about having to listen to > nonstop chatter from cellular phones. > In response, BART conducted a pair of polls -- one a random telephone > survey, the other an online poll open to anyone with Internet access. The > Sept. 11 terrorist attacks occurred while the surveys were being taken, > and BART officials believe the widely publicized use of cell phones during > the attacks persuaded many passengers to support wiring the tunnels. > Commuters interviewed in downtown San Francisco BART stations Thursday and > Friday were mostly receptive to the idea of subterranean cell phone > service, although some fretted that loud, ill-mannered callers would > degrade the quality of their commutes. > Edgar Sanchez, a nursing assistant also from Hayward, can't yet receive a > signal below ground on his Verizon cell. (He should be able to, Rae said, > within two or three weeks.) Sanchez said it's important to him to be able > to make or receive calls whether he's underground or above-ground. > "I wish it could work everywhere I go," he said. "Even underwater, > swimming. " > But some BART riders, like Stephanie Elliott, a psychotherapist from > Pacifica, aren't so sure of the need for constant connectivity. > "I don't think it's absolutely necessary," she said. "I think it > encourages people to have too hectic a lifestyle. People are always online > or hooked up and don't actually talk with other people except online." > Besides, she said, BART's signal-free subways offer a convenient excuse > not to talk with the office or answer e-mail during the commute to work. > "It's nice to be able to say, 'I'm sorry, I can't talk, I'm on BART,' " > she said. "I like that transition time. I like the ability to be > unreachable. I think it's healthier for people." > But many BART riders welcome below-ground cell-phone service, although > they worry about loudmouthed louts shouting into their cell phones to be > heard over the train noise. > "It's great as long as people are considerate about the people around them > when they use their phones -- keeping their conversations to a minimum, > not being too loud or boisterous," said Ryan Bezenek, a San Francisco > network engineer. > "Sometimes you get people who talk so loud you can hear every word," said > Lorraine Garcy, a consultant from Discovery Bay. > Still, she favors BART's plans to bring wireless reception to its tunnels > for safety and convenience. > "I'd like to see cellular availability every place," she said. "Would I > use it? I don't think I've used my cell phone on BART ever." > Rae said BART and the wireless companies know some riders will try to make > calls over the din as BART roars and screeches through tunnels. But most > of the business, he said, will be from people using wireless devices to > read and send e-mail or browse the Internet. > "You could use your Blackberry to take care of all your e-mail on your way > to work," he said. "But the trains are really too noisy (underground) to > have an intelligent conversation." > While not all commuters see the benefit of underground cell-phone service, > it could help stave off fare increases. BART's deal with the phone > companies for downtown San Francisco will bring in at least $408,000 a > year. As additional stations, tubes and tunnels are wired, that amount > could rise to more than $2 million a year. > It's a good deal, said Rae. BART pays nothing to install the antennas. > Nextel serves as the coordinator, planning, paying for and overseeing the > work. Other carriers have the right to buy in and to strike agreements to > reimburse Nextel and pay annual fees to BART. > While other transit agencies have deals with specific cell-phone services, > BART is the first in the nation to make a deal allowing underground access > to all wireless companies and their customers, Rae said. > "It's nice to know we've plowed ground on this, and it's working," he > said. "It's going to provide revenue to BART and convenience to our > customers." > > BART's underground is going wireless > > San Francisco stations where wireless devices work: > -- Embarcadero > -- Montgomery > -- Powell Street > -- Civic Center > > San Francisco stations where wireless service is planned: > -- 16th Street Mission > -- 24th Street Mission > -- Glen Park > -- Balboa Park > > East Bay stations where wireless service is planned: > -- Oakland 12th Street > -- Oakland 19th Street > -- Lake Merritt > -- North Berkeley > -- Berkeley > -- Ashby > > Source: BART
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