Government promise of fast, cheap Wi-Fi on trains goes off the rails

Train companies will only have to provide slow free Wi-Fi for customers despite a government pledge to introduce “fast, cheap internet connections” across the rail network.

Before the general election, the government announced that all train operators bidding on future franchises and direct contracts in England and Wales would have to include free Wi-Fi as part of their pitches.

The Department for Transport (DfT) even found almost £50m of funding for several operators, including Southeastern and Arriva Trains Wales, to make sure free Wi-Fi could be introduced on some lines by 2017.

However, Matt Hancock, the digital policy minister, revealed in a parliamentary debate that the minimum speed required on those bids was 1 megabit per second (Mbps) per passenger, “which allows for basic web browsing, basic email and social media activity”.

This speed means a video would take hours to download and even just opening an email with an attachment would be a lengthy process. This is about a decade out of date for business travellers, even though the government wanted free Wi-Fi to enable commuters “to keep up with work”.

Hancock said this minimum requirement would be increased by 25% a year and franchise bidders were already exceeding this threshold. For example, Abellio will provide up to 100 Mbps per passenger by 2019 on the East Anglia franchise.

But a senior rail executive told the Guardian train operators could not be relied upon to guarantee fast broadband given their track records.

He said: “Wi-Fi on trains is becoming an essential requirement for any business person travelling, but train companies in this country have been a bit slow on getting on board with better Wi-Fi.”

David Sidebottom, the passenger director at the watchdog Transport Focus, said: “Wi-Fi speed and connectivity can be patchy. Some operators charge for connections while on-board, while several do not offer any Wi-Fi at all.

“We know that passengers now expect reliable, free access to Wi-Fi on trains – it was in their top 10 priorities for improvement – so we urge future franchises to ensure they have the capability to deliver this.”

Louise Haigh, Labour’s digital economy spokeswoman, has pushed the government to commit to fast rail broadband through legislation. She is considering an amendment to the digital economy bill, which will return to the floor of the Commons next week.

Haigh said: “Providing good, free Wi-Fi on public transport is not just a better service for passengers but improves productivity and supports business as well.

“A third of the major rail franchises still do not provide free Wi-Fi, and the standard specification is only 1 Mbps per passenger, which will be very slow, even for some basic activity such as downloading an email with an attachment.

“Given the huge profits made by the private train companies, the government should be pushing them to go further, faster.”

Haigh is also preparing an amendment to the bus services bill, which would force bus operators to provide free Wi-Fi. “What goes for trains should go for the rest of our public transport network too,” she said.

A DfT spokesman said: “We are investing record amounts in our railways to improve journeys and expect that 90% of all trains will have access to Wi-Fi by the end of 2018, with virtually 100% by 2020.”