Comments on: Underground cell service plan still on hold

By: New York Subway Getting Wired | TheCityFix.com

New York Subway Getting Wired | TheCityFix.com — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:15:24 +0000

[...] stations for cell phone and internet service. But plans to outfit the stations were put on “terminal hold” because of concerns that Transit Wireless was not financially [...]

By: DC’s Metro moves toward a fully wired system :: Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:04:26 +0000

[...] service. Nearly two years later, nothing has come from the ten-year contract the MTA inked with a less-than-secure company. Meanwhile, a few hundred miles to the south, the District of Columbia’s WMATA is continuing [...]

By: Scott E

Scott E — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 03:32:12 +0000

OK, point taken. I understand that There’s More Than One Way to Bomb a Subway (there’s an eerie title if I ever heard one), but its still an argument that will be used by opponents to in-tunnel cell service.

By: herenthere

herenthere — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 23:55:25 +0000

Someone should make a song based on Jamie Foxx’s “Blame It” song and put the Fare Hike Four and state reps at blame for the MTA’s deteriorating condition.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:07:28 +0000

No, bombs are detonated by timers, or manually by suicide bombers. In London they used cellphone alarm clocks, which work even when there’s no cell coverage.

By: R2

R2 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:10:26 +0000

I’m tired of the safety issue crap. On the LIRR, there is cell phone service in the East River tunnels. If someone had wanted to cause trouble, it would have happened already!

By: Son of Spam

Son of Spam — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:09:15 +0000

I thought the “bomb-detonating calls” theory was debunked years ago. It’s just as easy for the remote bomber to set up a timer on the phone than it is to call into it. Putting wireless service in tunnels will not increase the chances of a bomb incident.

By: Scott E

Scott E — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:01:49 +0000

Rhywun – On the contrary – it’s not a waste of money, it’s a source of revenue for the MTA – just so long as it’s priced appropriately. When you ask for $3 million per month for rent, the apartment remains vacant.

The safety issue remains debatable. The system can be used to call for help, but it also can be used to receive bomb-detonating calls.

By: Ariel

Ariel — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:45:06 +0000

I strongly disagree with the commentators who say this is a waste of money. Not only should the MTA wire the stations, but they should wire the tunnels as well.

It is absolutely vital to improve our communication capacity around the city in order to remain competitive and cutting-edge. Advancing technological modernizations such as this one would increase our potential for economic growth by enhancing our ability to exchange information.

The overall benefits of increasing our communication capabilities trumps any nuisance that cellphone users will cause in an already noisy subway system.

By: Rhywun

Rhywun — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:56:31 +0000

The only positive thing I see about underground service is in case of an emergency. And how often is that?

Otherwise, this is vast waste of money for almost no benefit. Is it really so hard to for people to go without yapping for a hour or two a day??