National Express and Telabria Launch Wi-Fi Hotspots On Coaches
Birmingham & Sittingbourne, Kent, UK -/March 8, 2006 - Wi-Fi Technology News/- National Express, Europe's largest scheduled coach company, and Telabria the award-winning developer of wireless access systems today announced the launch of a trial which has seen Telabria's mSystem mobile Wi-Fi hotspots installed on coaches between London and Cambridge.
National Express customers boarding coaches on the 010 London to Cambridge route now have access to broadband Internet on the move via their Wi-Fi enabled laptops, PDAs and other handheld devices. Each coach on the route will carry Telabria's innovative mSystem MobilAP-3G, a multi-radio system that combines an 802.11b/g access point with 3G data network backhaul in a unit that weighs just 3lbs (1.4kg). Aimed at the public transportation industry, passengers on vehicles equipped with the MobilAP-3G can check email and surf the web over Wi-Fi at speeds up to 300 Kbps wherever there is 3G network coverage.
Gerry Price, Chief Engineer of National Express, said: "We are very excited about the potential of this trial and the benefits it will bring to our customers, particularly those on busy commuter routes who increasingly see the value of staying connected before they reach their place of work and after they leave. But it's not just the business community who will benefit. Mobile communication is increasingly being seen as a pre-requisite by a wide variety of travellers on the move. This trial demonstrates that National Express is at the forefront of assessing mobile technology systems for public transport, something that we hope will prove to be an important part of what we offer customers"
Jim Baker, founder and CEO of Telabria, added: "National Express is the first UK public transport operator to recognise the potential benefits of the completely mobile Wi-Fi system we have developed. The fact that National Express customers, thanks to this technology, will have access to a fast internet connection throughout their journey is a significant step forward."
Telabria believes that fully mobile, uninterrupted access to fast wireless Internet connections will become as commonplace as they currently are in coffee shops, airport lounges, hotels and pubs. 95% of all notebooks now ship with integrated wireless support, and it is estimated that 3G data coverage between the leading network operators is available to over 60% of the UK population, with GPRS data coverage extending to over 95%. UK mobile operators including T-Mobile and Vodafone are planning upgrades for existing 3G networks to HSDPA (High Speed Packet Download Access) during 2006, which will see download speeds increase to over 1.5 Mbps. Telabria expects to support HSDPA within the MobilAP product line later in the year.
While the National Express trial provides Internet access to passengers for free, the mSystem MobilAP-3G features integrated support for user authentication and billing, enabling operators to charge for Internet access on a tariff of their choice, thereby generating an additional revenue stream or added value service for customers. It also supports a range of third-party 3G data cards and networks, including Vodaphone, O2, T-Mobile, and Orange.
About Telabria
Founded in 2003, Telabria is an award winning, privately held developer of next-generation wireless products and networks for residential, business, and enterprise markets. Telabria products based on its multi-radio mSystem platform include the AMP-300 dual-radio outdoor mesh access point, designed for metro-scale Wi-Fi networks; and the MobilAP, a portable wireless device aimed at public transportation and mobile workgroup markets that bridges Wi-Fi access with 3G, HSDPA, UMTS TDD and WiMAX backhaul. Telabria solutions are deployed in urban, suburban and rural commercial markets, and in public sector environments including schools, libraries, museums, and local government buildings. For more information, visit
http://www.telabria.com.
About National Express
National Express is the largest scheduled coach service provider in Europe. In the UK their distinctive red, white and blue coaches operate to more than 1,000 destinations and carry over 18 million customers a year. Eurolines coaches additionally operate to over 500 destinations within Europe and Ireland. The company was established more than 30 years ago in Birmingham and is proud to be an award winning company for its customer service excellence (National Customer Service Awards 2005).
National Express is part of a leading international transport provider, National Express Group (NEG), with over 45,000 employees. In addition to train and bus companies within the UK including Gatwick Express, Midland Mainline and Travel West Midlands, NEG's overseas operations include student transportation and public transit in the USA & Canada and the management of Stewart International Airport near New York. In total National Express Group now carry more than 1 billion passengers a year.
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