End of the line for TConnect

Critics say Rogers, TTC cutting free Wi-Fi in subway stations will widen 'digital divide'

- BEN SPURR

The TTC and Rogers are pulling the plug on free public Wi-Fi in Toronto's subway stations, a move that critics say will increase the city's "digital divide" by making it harder for low-income riders to access the internet.

According to a briefing note sent to transit commission board members this week, the TConnect system, which launched on the subway more than a decade ago, has suffered from "chronic underinvestment" and "reached its end of life."

The service is exhibiting poor performance, is vulnerable to cyberattacks, and its usage has declined significantly as Rogers has rolled out cell coverage across the subway, according to the memo, which was first reported by the Star. TConnect will be discontinued by the end of the year.

Rogers will still move ahead with its ongoing project to extend 5G cell service to all subway stations and tunnels, which will allow riders to use their phones via data plans with all major carriers.

In a statement, the telecom giant said the transit agency bore sole responsibility for shutting down the free public Wi-Fi. "This is a TTC decision," it said. "We proposed options to the TTC to update or replace the equipment and they decided to decommission TConnect."

According to the briefing note, usage of the free Wi-Fi has fallen by 65 per cent in the past year, and the company says that as of this month, there were an average of about 20,000 logins per weekday. The number of riders actually using TConnect could be lower, because a single customer can log in multiple times over the course of a trip. The TTC subway records about one million boardings on an average weekday.