DC Metro System Answers Calls About Cell Phones

Those of you who live in Washington DC most likely know the frustration of having your cell phone calls getting dropped inside the DC Metro system. You may be happy to hear that Metro is working on a plan to make it easier for other cell phone carriers to provide service within the subway system.

Thanks to a network build-out Verizon undertook in the 1990s, only Verizon Wireless customers currently have coverage inside the tunnels (although Sprint users are able to roam on the network). GSM reception inside the tunnels is non-existent.

Don’t expect other carriers to rush into expansion projects, however; Verizon says that it took a month for every mile they wired, and a total investment of $25.5 million. But demand for more and better wireless coverage is high, and even Congress is getting involved in trying to make it happen.

Yet the discussion about this issue on a local website leaves no doubt that not all DC Metro riders are thrilled by the prospect of better cell phone reception during their commutes.