Everyone thats driven through Downtown Boston knows about the mess that is the Big Dig. Last time I went through the tunnels (mid-August), I couldn't hold a conversation. Now i can hold a conversation through the entire length of the I-93 & I-90 tunnels. Ive confirmed this with t-mo, cingular, and nextel. Not sure when this went into effect (couldnt find an article), but this is a huge plus for anyone that has to drive into downtown Boston, or to Logan Airport.
That is great news... It must have been in the last week. I was in Boston last weekend & it still didn't work. I remember an article in boston.com about the Turnpike Authority & the carriers not being able to agree on terms a while back. Maybe there is one good side effect of the Big Dig officials having bigger things to worry about.
Last Sunday (10/29) I watched my signal meter all the way through the I90 connector and Ted Williams tunnel, going east to the airport (no, I wasn't driving). It went down to 1 bar, but I never lost the 3G icon, meaning I still had a signal. Wasn't on a call, however. Also, because of repairs to the falling ceiling, they are still routing you above ground in South Boston briefly (right next to the new Convention Center) before you enter the Ted Williams. On Friday 11/3 I had several bars of signal all the way through the Sumner tunnel from East Boston. Again I was not on a call, but these are hopeful signs. SW
Beantown customers soon to talk in the Big Dig Posted Nov 27th 2006 9:05AM by Michael Caputo Filed under: Cingular, Sprint-Nextel, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Misc It isn't anything new that wireless companies are now providing service in the cities' subways and tunnels, but now customers of the Big Four in Boston are going to get an extra special treat of the use their cellphones in the Big Dig Tunnels. According to the documents filed at the Turnpike Authority of Massachusetts, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Sprint PCS, and T-Mobile are going to split the initial access cost which is expected to come in around 1.6 million and cost approx. $140,000 annually. That's no small chunk of change considering construction and installation costs are estimated to top out over $7 million. With all these costs adding up, don't hold your breath waiting for your provider to cut back on fees.
I have held a call on T-Mobile going through the Sumner Tunnel, within the last month. I don't know if this is trial service or what, but it seems to be working, as clock3687 said a while ago. SW
Hmmm, I recently went through the big dig tunnels, and i had no service (sprint) There wasnt even any roaming service(which would be Verizon). Whats going on??? I thought there was supposed to be coverage in these tunnels now???
I haven't tried the Big Dig, but so far only Verizon works in the subway stations. I will they would fix that on a higher priority.
I recently went through the Ted Williams & Sumner Tunnels and was able to hold a call no problem. Here's an article from November 07, it says that the reason cellular service hasnt been turned on in the O'Neill tunnel is b/c of the accident that happened a few years back when a panel fell and killed a motorist. They were testing to see if the antennas would cause something similar to happen if they were mounted to the ceiling panels . Cellphone service in Big Dig tunnels expected within months - The Boston Globe