MuniWireless

Los Angeles commuters on the Orange Line won’t be enjoying the benefits of Wi-Fi access on the Metro bus line any time soon because the operator, Metro, has dropped plans to provide wireless broadband to passengers. They claim that no service provider is interested. While other people in other cities are reaping the benefits of public transport equipped with Wi-Fi, Los Angeles, which desperately needs more people to take public transport, is looking the other way.

There are so many benefits…

Los Angeles’ downtown Little Tokyo district will launch a community network Thursday that will bring free Internet access to local businesses, homes and visitors.Los Angeles’ downtown Little Tokyo district will launch a community network Thursday that will bring free Internet access to local businesses, homes and visitors.

The network, which is funded by the Los Angeles’ Community Redevelopment Agency, was built by PRO 911 Systems and LTSC using the Tropos MetroMesh system .

“This important community and economic development project will provide…

In A wireless LA, but with strings attached, Christopher Hawthorne of the Los Angeles Times, asks what a wireless LA would look like. His commentary is not so much a criticism of the project’s details per se, but a thought piece on whether it would solve the digital divide and affect the city’s social dynamic. Hawthorne asks how would people interact, how would they experience the city, in a commentary that raises many questions and generates debate about citywide Wi-Fi…

The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority is looking into providing free or low-cost Wi-Fi service on four of its commuter rail lines.The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority is looking into providing free or low-cost Wi-Fi service on four of its commuter rail lines.

This week the city’s board of directors instructed the agency to do a feasibility study on providing the service on the Metro Red, Green, Blue and Orange lines. Their report is due in April.

The authority considered a similar…

Sam Churchhill at DailyWireless.org makes an impassioned plea for WiMAX as a cost effective alternative to Wi-Fi.Sam Churchhill at DailyWireless.org accompanied the announcement of Los Angeles’ plans to build a city-wide muni wireless network this week with an impassioned plea for WiMAX as a cost effective alternative to Wi-Fi.

Churchill makes a strong case but WiMax remains largely unproven in the field. Are communities attracted by the economies it promises or spooked by the fact that it’s not been widely implemented?…