This is to inform you that the report has been successfully prepared for the proposal titled “Absence of cellular network in subways”. The proposal was approved by you on October 16, 2019. Detailed research has been done to add content in formatted criteria to present a technical report.

The followed report portrays the problem of non-availability of mobile network in the underground trains. The topic also supports the current mass petition for cellular network in subways. The report describes the analogy between the three big telecoms and a small-scale network carrier (freedom) on account of their business link with BAI. Moreover, the document provides a brief topology of the network and terminology that supports the networking sphere with some relevant figures and statistics.

The report enumerates the consequences faced due to absences of network in subways and generalize hypothetical solutions that can solve the issue. A strong network infrastructure with repeaters is one of the solutions. Moreover, tower frequency and increasing number of network towers are other good options. Apart from this, upgradation of network devices will also improve network which requires funding and mutual decision of private sector (the network providers) and the public sectors (the government).

I anticipate hearing your contribution regarding my appraisals of unavailability of network in subways. If there are any issues or proposal that you may want to discuss about, kindly do not pause for a second to email me at lakshitachadha17@gmail.com so as to set up a time and place for meeting.

Sincerely,

Lakshita Chadha 301045143

Abstract of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

The use of mobile network services has become quite common in the modern world. In fact, every single person is connected with each through these services. In fact, different telecommunication firms offer mobile network services to people around the world. However, the same cannot be said about the subway of Toronto. In this paper, the issue of unavailability of cellular networks in the Toronto subway was considered. Through the use of online research, relevant information was collected and it was determined that in Toronto, it is not that a proper and eligible network model is possessed. In fact, it has been analyzed that the underlying reason is completely different. Passengers are unable to use mobile network services which traveling through the subway is because the three major carriers in Toronto don't want to collaborate with BAI to offer underground services. At present, only Freedom Mobile collaborates with BAI and provides passengers with underground network services. In this paper, it has been suggested that these organizations should reach a mutual conclusion and devise a clear solution. In addition to it, Toronto should consider BAI model and make other organizations collaborate with each other to facilitate subway passengers.

Introduction and Background of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

In the modern world, the use of mobile service or cellular network has become quite common. It wouldn't be wrong to say that it has become a part of everyday life. People around the world depend on the cellular network to communicate with each other and convey important information. In fact, even businesses depend on cellular networks to carry out different types of operations. Other than business, almost every person is connected with the other through mobile networks. Without it, one can say that spending life can be very difficult. This type of scenario is experienced by people who travel through subways in Toronto. They have to face issues because cellular network is not available as they travel from one place to another. In this paper, this issue will be explored in-depth and its causes will be determined (Brown & Green, 2012).

Background of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Mobile Networks and Telecommunication Companies

A mobile network or cellular network is generally a communication network where the last link is not wired. The last link is commonly wireless and the network is spread over areas and land with the use of cells. Each cell is served by a transceiver and network coverage is provided to the cell by base stations. This network coverage is utilized for the transmission of data and voice. Typically, a cell utilizes different frequency sets for avoiding interference. In this manner, service quality is guaranteed.

When all of these components are joined together, radio coverage is provided by these cells over a wide area. A large number of transceivers such as laptops, tablets, and mobile phones are enabled to communicate with each other. Some of the major providers of telecommunications have deployed data and voice cellular networks over most of area which is inhabited by people. This enables mobile computing devices and mobile phones to be connected with each other.

These services of mobile networks are provided by different telecommunication companies. These organizations generally create the infrastructure through which data in the form of audio, voice, or words can be delivered to different places. Some of the largest organizations in the sector include providers of internet service, cable companies, satellite companies, and telephone operators. These organizations are spread throughout the world and based in different countries. Since they are based in almost every nation, they offer mobile network services to people living in those countries. There are telecommunication organizations in Canada as well. It means that cellular networks should be spread throughout the nation. However, people traveling through the subway still face issues when it comes to using these cellular networks.

Toronto Subway and TTC of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

It wouldn't be wrong to say that the Toronto subway is a part of quite a large transportation network for the public which includes light rapid transit, buses, and streetcars. TTC or Toronto Transit Commission is responsible for running the whole network. In 1954, it was opened and became the first subway of Canada. Ever since then, it has expanded to a four-line system with 75 stations from an individual, 12-station line. And in 2016, the Toronto subway was utilized by over 221 million people. In Toronto, the first ten years of the twentieth century experienced an explosion in population. The figures were almost doubled to 381,833 in 1911 from 209,892 in 1901. of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Figure 1: In-Service Revenue

The transportation network of the city strained to manage this growth because of obstacles in dealing with TRC or Toronto Railway Company, a private organization. With the expansion of boundaries of the city, it was refused by TRC to extend and expand the services beyond the common areas which were outlined in the contract. The organization also refused to add more vehicles due to which streetcar lines were developed. In Toronto, early subway discussions were focused around streetcar lines which were underground. It was then reported that two lines were to be developed by Kearney. Discussions were terminated when it was indicated by the city that lines could not be privately operated by Kearney beyond 1921. From this moment onward, an objective was made about publicly operating the transit lines (Toronto, 2016).

Although proposals for underground streetcar and subways, the officials of TCC did not seriously think about creating a system until WWII. Considering the fact that the current infrastructure was not prepared for the postwar conditions, the TTC formed Rapid Transit Department in January 1944. It was then that a number of lines were developed by the TCC which connected different places and allowed passengers to travel without having to face issues. At present, the network has become significantly large and numerous people depend on it to travel across different places.

The only issue that passengers face is concerned with the unavailability of mobile networks in the subway. This issue leads to other significant problems. For instance, a person might be in a hurry and he has to communicate with his colleagues while traveling. Moreover, if he has to travel through the subway, then he will be unable to communicate and accomplish his objective. If that person has a task related to his business, he will be powerless because since the mobile network is unavailable, he will not be capable of either connecting with the internet or sending a message through the network. This person will obviously suffer because of the fact that mobile network is not available in the subway. If this issue is not resolved, passengers will continue to face issues (TTC, 2019).

Significance

In this paper, the underlying causes for this issue will be determined. Considering the fact that the unavailability of the cellular network throughout the subway is a problem. Obviously, it has some underlying causes due to which this problem has emerged and it is faced by passengers. This study is considered important as it will determine the underlying causes of this problem. There are not many studies which have been conducted in this direction. Although there are studies on subways, there is a lack of studies which study the unavailability of cellular network in the subway. Therefore, this study will contribute significantly to the existing studies and will help researchers in conducting further studies on this topic.

Discussion and Findings of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Generally, there are three large cell phone carriers in Canada. Their services, networks, and prices appear to be the same. These organizations include Telus, Rogers, and Bell and they offer services to over ninety-seven percent of people in Canada. However, Telus is at the front when it comes to offering reliability and speed in the network. These are some of the organizations which offer cellular services in Canada. In addition to it, these organizations offer services to a large number of customers as explained before. Their networks are spread throughout Canada with subways being an exception.

If one analyzes the networks which are offered by these organizations, he would say that cellular network might be available in every part of Toronto. However, that is not the truth because passengers cannot use their mobile phones while traveling through the subway. In fact, they have to face significant issues in order to use the cellular network and communicate with each other. If a passenger has to make a call or send some information to a person through his mobile phone, he has to wait and perform the action because they cannot do it as soon as they begin their journey.

In accordance with Vice (2019), a customer of Rogers, Telus, or Bell cannot use his mobile phone to communicate with others through the cellular network. Passengers might have service as they wait for their train to arrive. But still, its chances are significantly less as well. And when it comes to tunnels, there is no service. The reason why calls cannot be made and important messages cannot be delivered is because these telecommunication organizations don’t allow their customers to utilize their existing cellular network. Even though these firms offer services to over ninety percent of the people in Canada, they don’t allow customers to use their services while traveling through the subway.

Nathan Gibson, the spokesperson of Bell, explained that Canadian wireless providers are looking forward to creating wireless infrastructures which are required in the subway system of Toronto. However, access has been denied to them. Bill Killorn, the spokesperson of Rogers, explained that the firm is focused on providing a consistent and reliable experience to customers and will always take opportunities for expanding the network. Similarly, it was described by Telus that at present, there are no concreter plans for cellular service in the subway of Toronto.

BAI Communications specializes in manufacturing transmission networks and infrastructures for enabling the spread of cellular networks. The organization is renowned for developing high-quality and reliable communication infrastructures for passengers in both New York and Hong Kong. Although it has developed an infrastructure for providing underground services in Toronto, it doesn’t has many supporters with Freedom Mobile being an exception. This infrastructure can be made effective if mobile service providers make an agreement with BAI. In addition to it, the organization has the deal open for mobile service providers to consider.

The CEO of BAI has explained that the organization has invested over 50 million dollars in laying down the wireless system and there is not enough space for duplicating it. This approach, according to him, is not feasible. It has been suggested by both Killorn and Gibson that the transit system model of Montreal should be considered by Toronto where all telecommunication service providers were requested to participate in the necessary wireless infrastructure. In Montreal, passengers have been experiencing the mobile services since 2014. In addition to it, they haven’t had faced any issue in mobile services ever since then because there are several service providers to offer services.

However, the same cannot be said about Toronto. Moreover, there are no signs that there will be a development of cellular networks for subways in the near future. It is explained by Ranger that if the major three organizations are capable of working in collaboration with each other in Montreal, they can follow the same pattern with his organization in Toronto as well. For instance, his organization has developed a wireless infrastructure for a more complex and largest subway system such as Hong Kong and New York (Gaviola, 2019).

In accordance with CBC (2019), cellular services are expanding in terms of the subway system. However, it doesn’t mean that passengers can just depend on cellular networks to communicate with each other as they travel from one place to another through the subway. Even though the CEO of BAI Communications Canada, Ken Rnager, has explained for the past two years that the organization has been installing antennas and working on providing cellular services to customers, there is only one service provided which has accepted the terms and signed on to the network of BAI. He has explained that in other nations, the organization has some other telecommunication providers such as T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T. Due to this collaboration, they have been capable of providing cellular services to subway passengers.

However, in Toronto, the organization only has Freedom Mobile. Now, it is important to consider that Freedom Mobile is also a cellular service provider but in comparison with the Big Three, it offers a significantly small portion of customers. Therefore, there are not many people who are capable of accessing mobile network services and using them. Only the customers of Freedom are able to use the cellular network and communicate with others.

Margaret Ghan, an employee in the financial district of Toronto, has faced issues due to the lack of connectivity. She has also exclaimed that many other nations offer Wi-Fi throughout their transit systems but TTC is lagging behind. As a passenger and an active social person, she wants to be connected with the world through her mobile phone but she is unable to do so because there is no mobile connectivity. She wants to communicate with her friends and family members but since there is no access to mobile service in TCC, she suffers from it. According to Ranger, people need mobile network services because not only they want to be connected with their family members but they want to inform them if any issue occurs. For instance, if there is a problem in the transit system, then passengers would want to inform their parents or other family members that they will be late.

There are many other issues which might be faced by people in the absence of cellular networks and mobile services. Even though significant work has been done to offer services underground to passengers, they are still unable to use mobile services (Lee-Shanok, 2019).

Analysis of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

From the above findings, it can be said that the infrastructure of cellular networks is available in Toronto. Considering the fact that subway passengers are unable to utilize cellular services and communication with others or share information, it raises the question about the infrastructure or development of cellular networks. It causes a person to think that maybe an efficient or capable system for supporting and accommodating the needs of passengers is not available. However, that is not the case with subway of Toronto. In fact, there is a cellular network model which has proven to be effective in Hong Kong and New York. The transit system of these regions is significantly large in comparison with the transit system of both Hong Kong and New York. Their transit system has to accommodate a large number of people who use subway for traveling from one place to another. In comparison with these areas, the transit system of Toronto is smaller. It means that the same transit model should be more than capable of fulfilling the requirements of passengers.

It also means that this system should be capable of providing passengers with a variety of options in the context of cellular networks. It should offer different services for passengers to take and be connected with the world. However, that is not the case and it is due to the fact that the three major mobile network providers are not agreed to collaborate with each other. The model developed by BAI for Hong Kong and New York has other organizations such as AT&T and Sprint working in collaboration with the firm to offer cellular network services to passengers. In Toronto, however, only Freedom Mobile is collaborating with BAI. Due to it, only the customers of BAI are capable of using mobile network services as they travel through the subway.

In comparison with Freedom, the Big Three are significantly large and serve a large base of customers. However, they want to establish a model by themselves and implement it rather than work with each other and share mutual benefits. At the end of the day, the issue is that these organizations are against each other and they would rather develop a model of their own rather than work with BAI to offer underground mobile services. The main reason why these organizations don’t want to collaborate with each other is because of the term and conditions involved in collaboration with each other. Although these terms are not known to public, it is only a supposition that the contract might divide sales into the company providing mobile network services and BAI.

Considering the fact that the transit model for Toronto has been developed by BAI, every organization working with it will not be able to enjoy the overall sales made by the firm. For instance, if Rogers collaborates with BAI, it will have to share the sales with BAI because the parent organization of the model is BAI. It is only a supposition but there is a high likelihood that organizations might not be working with BAI because they don’t want to share their sales. Rather than collaborating with BAI, they want to develop a transit model of their own and enjoy increased sales. This solution is preferred more by the Big Three rather than collaborating with another organization.

Conclusion and Recommendations of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Overall, it can be said that in the modern world, the use of mobile service or cellular network has become quite common. It wouldn't be wrong to say that it has become a part of everyday life. In fact, even businesses depend on cellular networks to carry out different types of operations. In 1954, TTC was opened and became the first subway of Canada. Ever since then, it has expanded to a four-line system with 75 stations from an individual, 12-station line. And in 2016, the Toronto subway was utilized by over 221 million people. Generally, there are three large cell phone carriers in Canada. Their services, networks, and prices appear to be the same. These organizations include Telus, Rogers, and Bell and they offer services to over ninety-seven percent of people in Canada.

From the above findings, it can be said that the infrastructure of cellular networks is available in Toronto. In comparison with Freedom, the Big Three are significantly large and serve a large base of customers. However, they want to establish a transit network model by themselves and implement it rather than work with each other and share mutual benefits. Due to this conflict of interest, subway passengers are unable to utilize mobile network services.

Recommendations of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Following are some steps which can be taken to improve the current situation and provide underground cellular networks:

The Three Big and BAI should work together to reach a mutual conclusion in which all of the organizations share equal benefits.

Toronto should consider the BAI model and make the telecommunication companies collaborate with each other to offer underground network services to passengers.

The Three Big and BAI should consider discussing the issue with each other and devise a sustainable solution. They should refrain from developing individual network models and create a collective and reliable network.

A strong network infrastructure with repeaters is one of the solutions. It can enable cellular service providers to ensure that underground services are provided to subway passengers. Therefore, such a network infrastructure can be implemented as well.

In addition it, increasing the tower frequency and number of network towers can also help the providers in meeting the demand of customers.

Apart from this, upgradation of network devices will also serve to improve the range of network. However, it is important to note that it requires funding and a mutual decision of private sector (the network providers) and the public sectors (the government).

References of Absence of Cellular Network in Toronto Subways

Brown, B., & Green, N. (2012). Wireless world: Social and interactional aspects of the mobile age. Springer Science & Business Media.

Gaviola, A. (2019). Telecoms Won't Let Your Phone Get Service on the Toronto Subway. Retrieved from Vice: https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/ne8dgm/telecoms-are-stopping-your-phone-from-getting-service-on-the-toronto-subway

Lee-Shanok, P. (2019). Cell service is expanding on the TTC. Here's why you may not be able to use it. Retrieved from CBC: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/underground-cellular-service-expands-on-ttc-south-of-bloor-1.5131655

Toronto. (2016). Transit Services. Retrieved from Toronto: https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/8de4-Transit2016-TTC-Final-AODA.pdf

TTC. (2019). History. Retrieved from TTC: https://www.ttc.ca/About_the_TTC/History/index.jsp