Slowly but surely, rapid-speed internet connection is being rolled out across the Tube. It may reduce the number of people you see glued to War And Peace, but it’ll cut the number of albums you need to properly download on Spotify for fear of losing connection midway through, so it’s all swings and roundabouts.
Anyway, you will have noticed that parts of the Central, Jubilee and Northern lines are already hooked up to the 4G network, but now the first Elizabeth line stops that will boast signal have been named.
From around Christmas time, the stations wired up to the connection will be: Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, and Liverpool Street. TfL also confirmed that from April, the remainder of the line’s tunnel stations between Abbey Wood, Stratford and Paddington would be complete.
Excitingly, there’s also further news on the 4G plans for the rest of the Tube lines. From today (September 8), Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Street on the Central line have officially become the first West End stations to receive 4G and 5G treatment, with the former station also dishing out the internet to its Northern line branch.
4G network is expected to cover 80% of the Underground by the end of 2024, though work is expected to extend into 2025 and 2026 for the remaining segments. All four phone networks (EE, Vodafone, VMO2 and Three) will work in the tunnels.
Over the next few months, Goodge Street, Chancery Lane and Bank are expected to join the Northern line stations, including Camden Town and Mornington Crescent, that already enjoy 4G signal. By the end of 2023, 33 Tube stations are expected to have access to the network.
TfL also confirmed that both the DLR and London Overground between Highbury and Islington and New Cross would also receive 4G in the next two years.