All Elizabeth line stations now have 4G mobile coverage as the Mayor and TfL’s programme to improve connectivity for those travelling underground continues.
Paddington, Canary Wharf, Whitechapel and Woolwich stations all recently gained 4G mobile coverage – meaning that all Elizabeth line stations now have mobile coverage – from ticket halls all the way to the platforms. Work to deliver coverage within the tunnelled sections of the Elizabeth line continues, with the first sections between Bond Street and Liverpool Street expected to get coverage within the coming month, with the whole line completed later this year.
Providing uninterrupted mobile coverage provides additional reassurance to those travelling on the network, making it easier for customers to stay in touch with friends and family as well as allow staff to better provide information and better assist customers with their journeys. The system, delivered in partnership with Boldyn Networks, will also host the new Emergency Services Network (ESN), which when fully operational, will give first responders immediate access to life-saving data, images and information in live situations and emergencies on the frontline.
Following line testing to ensure that the introduction of 4G and 5G mobile coverage would not impact existing safety systems required to run a safe and reliable network, the tunnelled section between Euston and Warren Street on the Victoria line, as well as Covent Garden station on the Piccadilly line, have also both begun receiving mobile coverage. The tunnelled sections between Piccadilly Circus and Hyde Park Corner on the Piccadilly line will also go live in the coming weeks, meaning more customers heading to and from the West End can stay better connected while travelling underground.
Next month, coverage will also begin on the Bakerloo line, further helping those travelling through central London stay in touch. The southern end of the Northern line from Stockwell to Morden will also start to get mobile coverage shortly, with 4G and 5G coverage due to become available at Clapham Common station next week, and further tunnels and stations going live during the summer.
The introduction of high-speed mobile coverage by TfL and Boldyn Networks means that customers can stay better connected as they travel to and from the West End to shop, meet friends and visit the area’s theatres, restaurants and bars. All four mobile network operators – Three UK, EE, Vodafone, and Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) – are taking part in the rollout.
Currently, around 31 out of 121 Tube stations with platforms that are underground, and therefore usually unable to get a mobile signal, as well as connecting tunnels, have mobile coverage. This is around 25 percent of stations which are ‘underground, and when combined with Tube stations which are above ground, means that more than two thirds of all stations on the Tube network now have mobile coverage available.
To highlight this, TfL has updated its map to show the expected coverage by the end of summer 2024. This continued progress means that a significant proportion of the entire Tube network (around 80 per cent of stations across the network) as well as the entire Elizabeth line, remain on track to have mobile coverage by the end of 2024.
