Could SA trains have WiFi in the future?

By Rodney Weidemann for Telkom

Johannesburg, 25 May 2004

A poll conducted by a provider of Internet locations in the UK has found that the majority of UK business rail travellers want to see wireless broadband Internet access (WiFi) available on trains.

Andrew Weldrick, Telkom`s senior manager for media relations, says that although the organisation is not really looking at South African trains as a potential market for its T-Zone hotspots at present, it certainly is a possibility for the future.

"At the moment, our focus is on areas like airports, upmarket coffee shops and hotels, as these places map to our target market," he says.

"At present, there are fewer high-end businessmen in SA who travel by train, so at the moment there is little market for this sort of service, but that could change in the future."

Weldrick says the so-called 'Shilowa Express` - the high-speed Gautrain project that will operate between Pretoria and Johannesburg - may change Telkom`s mind about the concept of the 'connected carriage`.

"Obviously, if high-end business people use the Gautrain, Telkom would surely be interested in providing this type of service," says Weldrick.

Ant Brooks, co-chairman of ISPA`s regulatory committee, says as far as SA goes, there is no legal precedent for mobile WiFi of this nature, and it would be interesting to see how the current regulations would be interpreted should this come into play.

Brooks agrees with Telkom`s view that at present, the target market is not big enough to sustain this kind of culture. "High-end users tend to drive rather than go by train," he notes. However, he sees potential for train stations to be used as hubs for providing government information to commuters.

In the UK survey, three-quarters of businessmen polled claimed that on-train connectivity, providing Internet on the move, would create a clear reason to choose rail travel over other modes of transport.

The research, conducted by UK-based Broadreach Networks, found that of those business rail travellers who use a laptop, personal digital assistant and/or mobile phone, around 80% regularly work during their journey on the train.

It also showed that WiFi users would be 12 times more likely to use a hotspot on a train than anywhere else, because it would allow them to be productive even during travel time.

Survey respondents also said the ability to connect on the train would give them more time for leisure (40%), more time with family and friends (40%) which would inevitably lead to less stress in their lives (30%). Some 36% felt that working on the train would give them a competitive-edge.

In terms of payment, many claimed they would be willing to pay around lb5 per hour on a per-minute basis, or a flat fee of between lb5 and lb12, although they did demand a variety of payment methods, including vouchers, credit card or through their existing service provider, with only 28% of those surveyed expecting to see WiFi access included in the price of their train ticket.

As for South African trains having Internet access in the future, Weldrick says: "WiFi is still a niche market in this country, but if the opportunity fits with the market Telkom is targeting, I don`t see why we wouldn`t do so in the future."