Rogers Communications Inc. says it has turned on cellular service in a small portion of the remaining subway tunnels where riders have been eagerly waiting to be able to connect.
The company, which has been working to expand wireless service to the remaining 36 kilometres of unconnected tunnels since last May, announced over the weekend that 5G service is now available between Kipling and Islington, and Keele and Dundas West stations.
For Rogers, the project began two years ago when it acquired the cellular network in the subway system from BAI Canada, vowing to upgrade existing infrastructure—which only Freedom Mobile customers had access to since 2015—and extend it across the subway map.
By late 2023, the wireless network was available to passengers in every subway station, along with tunnels mostly concentrated downtown between St. George, Bloor-Yonge and Union stations.
Rogers says it’s aiming to connect 80 percent of the entire tunnel network by the end of this year, aligning with a deadline set by the federal government, and will turn on 5G service as work is completed.
The company says work is taking place overnight and during weekend construction windows to minimize disruption for subway riders.
