WNA

Verizon’s voice and 3G and 4G LTE data services are now available in 35 New York City subway stations, reports contractor Transit Wireless

The stations cover the west side of Manhattan from 23rd St. to 96th St, including Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Lincoln Center and Columbus Circle. The signals are distributed on fiber optic cable through ducts under city streets to subway stations where the cables connect to multi-band radio frequency (RF) nodes, which are placed on platforms, mezzanines and at various points within public access passageways.

New Yorkers using AT&T and T-Mobile already have service in many stations, and Sprint wireless is reportedly on the way.

The New York subway project comprises more than 22 million square feet of real estate that will receive access to wireless service, that covers everything from 700 megahertz to 6 gigahertz, which includes Wi-Fi, as well as New York City Transit-owned spectrum.

While the Internet not on the island’s western corridor, Transit Wireless intends to bring Wi-Fi to the entire subway system by 2017. The total cost of the project is expected to be between $200 million and $250 million, though Transit Wireless and the carriers will foot the entire bill.

Cablevision is now extending its reach to nearly a dozen major commuter rail stations in northern New Jersey.

Its Optimum WiFi service is now available throughout 11 New Jersey Transit train stations, including major hubs at Hoboken Terminal, Newark Penn Station, Secaucus Junction, Trenton Transit Center, and Newark Broad Street. Other stations on the list are the Meadowlands, Metropark, Montclair State University, New Brunswick, Rahway, and Summit.

The MSO’s existing Optimum Online subscribers can access the NJ Transit hotspots for free. Non-subscribers are allowed five free passes per device. Further 24 hr passes are available for $4.99 each.