On Monday, 8th December, the Tyne and Wear Metro started a three-month trial of free Wi-Fi at its Central Station in Newcastle city centre.

The trial will enable Wi-Fi calls, internet access, and text and WhatsApp messages on the station platforms and in the ticket concourse at the station. This is the first time that a public Wi-Fi service has been made available on the Metro, and if successful, it could be rolled out to other busy underground stations, including Monument, Haymarket, Jesmond, St James and Gateshead.

To prevent indecent and inappropriate material from being accessed, the Wi-Fi will be filtered to block unsafe sites.

Access to the free Wi-Fi is via Metro’s Pop App, with users required to register before they go online. After registration, users can access data and get online free of charge. The free Wi-Fi will also provide real-time Metro service updates where 4G and 5G access is limited.

Access can also be made through an app from the service provider, Purple. In this case, users should open their browser and, when prompted, select the ‘Metro Connect’ network on the home page. Alternatively, they can access the network via the Wi-Fi settings on their mobile device.

Free Wi-Fi is already available to passengers with other operators, including ScotRail and SouthWestern Railway.

“We’re really excited to be piloting the Tyne and Wear Metro’s first-ever free Wi-Fi service, which is going to really improve the digital experience for thousands of our customers. “Better connectivity at our underground Metro stations is something that customers really want to see, and we’re now able to start delivering that through this initial trial of the Metro Connect Wi-Fi at Central Station.”

“We understand how important it is for people to stay connected while they are on the move. Metro Connect will provide customers with fast and easy access to data with their smartphones and tablets. It’ll transform how they can browse for key information and get real-time service updates through our Pop App when they need it. We see strong data connectivity on Metro trains and at most of the stations across the system, but the busy underground stations could be better and often struggle to get any 4G or 5G connection at all, other than with EE. Wi-Fi remedies this issue.”

“If the trial proves successful with high customer demand, then we could look at rolling out Wi-Fi to other key Metro stations which currently have poor digital connectivity.”

Steve Duchar, Head of ICT at Nexus