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High Speed Rail: Internet connection on board Thalys trains

Posted on May 27, 2008 by Matthieu Desiderio

Thalys, the train service operated by both the French national railway company SNCF and the Belgium national railway company SNCB inaugurated May 14, 2008 its new on-board service: Wi-Fi internet is now available while running at 320 kph between Paris, Brussels, Köln, and Amsterdam. At the same time, Thalys inaugurated the portal associated to the Wi-Fi access: Thalysnet.

As of today, 25% of the rolling stock is equipped with this new service, with a paying or free access depending on the class passengers are traveling in. By fall 2008, Thalys plans to equip all of its trainsets. Passengers traveling in Comfort 1 class will enjoy free access to both the portal and the internet, and passengers traveling in Comfort 2 class will have free access to Thalysnet, and web connection will be €6.50 for an hour, or €13 for an unlimited connection. Two options will be proposed to subscribe to the service: passengers will either have to pay by credit card through the portal or buy a prepaid card at the restaurant-car ThalysBar.

The internet service has been made possible thanks to a partnership with Nokia Siemens Networks (project managing company), 21Net (responsible for the installation, and the satellite connection), and Telenet (developing Thalysnet, customer service, etc.).

Internet on-board: one step of the “Nouveau Thalys” program

Internet access on-board Thalys TGV trainsets is part of the “Nouveau Thalys” (“New Thalys”) program, launched early 2008. Another project part of the program is to allow passenger to use their “Navigo” pass (Paris transit smartcard) instead of a regular ticket. Some more improvement will come: new outfits for Thalys employees, and a new interior design for trainsets riding between Amsterdam and Köln.

Internet access already tested on TGV Est network

An article published January 8, 2008 on Transport Expertise discussed the test phase of an internet service on-board high-speed trains. See References from the Transport Information Group for the whole article.

It is now possible! Since December 7, 2007, SNCF, the French railway operator, has equipped three train sets so that passengers on board can be connected to the Internet through a broadband wifi/satellite network.

At this time, the system is only in a test phase for three month and passengers do not know in advance if they buy a ticket on a “connected” train or not. Anybody riding the TGV Est, from Paris to the East of France and Germany, could then board a train with an Internet connection and enjoy the new technological experiment.

From “High Speed Rail: Surfing the Internet at 320 kph”, Jan. 8, 2008

References from the Transport Information Group

Category: ITS, high speed rail, mobility, passengers, projects, rail, transport