The Pendolino will have WiFi by summer
ČD Pendolino trains will offer free WiFi connections by summer 2012. Electrical outlets are also being installed in 2nd class carriages. In four of the seven trains they are already in operation, and during the winter they will become available to passengers on all trains. SC Pendolino connections continue to be the fastest trains linking Prague, Pardubice, Olomouc and Ostrava, and their use grew this year as well. In October, they transported 8,000 passengers more than last year.
WiFi service is being installed on Pendolino trains based on a negotiated procedure with publication by the company Simac Technik ČR, a.s. During the course of the winter months, WiFi will be implemented on the first train, and by summer 2012 it will have been installed on the remaining six trains. Installation will take place during planned maintenance periods and during the night hours in order not to restrict operations of SC Pendolino trains. The transfer of the signal between the train and fixed infrastructure will be secured by the coverage of existing public operators. The WiFi service will be offered on SC Pendolino connections free of charge.
Also presently underway is the installation of 230 V 50 Hz electrical outlets for charging passengers’ small electronic devices, e.g. laptops and mobile telephones, in 2nd class carriages (they have been available in 1st class carriages since the beginning). Passengers already have fully functional electrical outlets on four of the trains: nos. 002, 004, 005 and 007. On the remaining three trains the wiring has already been installed, and during the winter months the technology enabling their activation will be implemented. Thus, by spring 2012 passengers will have outlets available on all SC Pendolino connections.
SC Pendolino trains are still the fastest trains between Prague and Ostrava. The distance of 351 kilometres between Prague’s Main Station and Ostrava-Svinov is covered in 2 hours 56 min. at an average speed of 120 km/h, roughly half an hour faster than the second-fastest connection on this route. In 2010, SC Pendolino trains were also the most reliable and most on-time trains in the Czech Republic. It’s thus no wonder that interest in them continues to grow this year as well. Year-on-year from January through October they transported roughly 11% more passengers, and in October alone, when there were more connections in operation on the Prague – Ostrava route, year-on-year growth amounted to 8,000 passengers.
WiFi on other trains too
ČD has prepared a study on the installation of WiFi on other trains and classical carriages, which will affect some 400 passenger carriages, mainly for long-distance travel. The time frame and actual extent of WiFi installation on additional trains has not been set, however, and will depend on experience and passenger feedback from the operation of WiFi on SC Pendolino trains as well as on the available resources which will be allocated for installing equipment in the coming years.