OLYMPIA – The state Department of Transportation says it will no longer offer wireless Internet access at rest areas because too few people are subscribing to use it.
The DOT set up wifi at 28 of its 42 rest areas in 2006 so that travelers could check road conditions, e-mail and hopefully, have another reason to take a rest when driving tired, according to a press release.
DOT partner Parsons Transportation Group and Road Connect Inc. paid to set up the system and were sharing a portion of the revenue generated by subscriptions. But it proved not to be profitable, so the companies will discontinue the service as of Monday.
“Twenty million people a year visit our rest areas and we hoped this feature would provide an incentive for drivers to take a break and access the Internet for business, or go to our site for road conditions,” said Doug Pierce, DOT’s maintenance manager in charge of rest areas. “With people already having Internet access on cell phones and other wireless devices, the number of subscribers didn’t meet up to projected use estimates.”
DOT is now looking into how it might use the system in the future to provide electronic messaging at rest areas for road conditions and travel alerts.
More information is available at: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Safety/RestAreas/wifi.htm
No more wifi at highway rest stops
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Staff Report | Skagit Valley HeraldAugust 29, 2008 - 04:06 PM
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