In 2008, four of Miami-Dade County's largest public parks began providing free wireless service to residents and visitors as part of a pilot program. Since then, over 100,000 users have logged on. Due to the success of this pilot program, wireless service will be included in select future parks and in some parks being upgraded.
The success of the pilot program has reinforced the goal of Wireless Miami Dade - to create an environment that is technologically appealing to residents, visitors and businesses; to establish and maintain a sense of community safety; and to reach out to underserved residents. So far, we've concentrated on providing municipal Wi-Fi to residents to shrink the economic obstacles associated with access and deployment. But, more importantly, we want to improve residents' experiences when utilizing County services. So, we began to ask ourselves: what else makes sense today?
Based on our successful pilot program, we decided to expand our pilot to Metrorail and Metrobus. Since the pilot launch, wireless access has improved the transit experience for commuters, transit workers and has been an added convenience for the residents of Miami-Dade County. Wireless routers have been installed on four coaches serving a total of 20 trains throughout the entire rail network and in two 95 Express Buses.
Today, riders can hop on a train or bus, and check e-mails, read the newspaper online, or just surf the web on laptops, hand held devices, Kindles and iPads - for free - before they even arrive at the office. It's all about convenience and making the Miami-Dade transit experience better.
We're moving forward… embracing new technology and improving service for our residents.
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