EE UK Boosts 4G Mobile Coverage Across London’s Rail Network UPDATE

Mobile operator EE (BT) has today announced that they’ve built 69 new 4G mobile sites and upgraded 35 more across multiple lines in London, which has improved their network coverage and data speeds (mobile broadband) along the city’s key commuter rail routes. But the work doesn’t stop there.

At present the operator has improved connectivity on seven sections of the route between London Euston and Birmingham New Street and six between London Victoria and Brighton. Other lines to see upgrades include London Paddington to Reading, and London Liverpool Street to Chelmsford.

Further upgrades have also been conducted on key lines used by travellers to and from the UK, such as the first in-tunnel 4G coverage on the HS1 line between St Pancras International and Ashford International (this is being extended to deliver coverage throughout all tunnels later this summer). Improvements have also been made on key sections of rail lines to London’s Heathrow, Stansted and Gatwick airports.

The operator has also “doubled” its mobile broadband capacity at a number of stations including London Euston, London Liverpool Street and City Thameslink stations, while smaller upgrades have taken place at London Victoria, London Kings Cross and Charing Cross.

David Salam, EE’s Director of Mobile Networks, said:

“We’ve made huge improvements to key routes in and out of London to keep our customers connected as restrictions begin to ease and the number of workers and visitors returning to the city increases. Whether listening to music or podcasts, streaming the latest movies, or gaming with friends, our network has been built and upgraded to ensure seamless connectivity on commutes and at London’s busiest rail hubs.”

EE added that “hundreds” of future mobile sites are also in the process of being planned for future deployment across the capital city’s rail network. Meanwhile, their station upgrades have been largely delivered over in-building DAS (Distributed Antenna Systems) technology and in some cases reconfigured to work over a 2 x 2 MIMO (multiple input multiple output) antenna to enhance performance.

Not to forget that customers of EE, BT and Plusnet continue to benefit from free WiFi coverage, which includes many underground station halls.

UPDATE 18th May 2021

EE has clarified the status of free WiFi coverage. “As it currently stands, the capability has been secured for all three brands, and is currently active for EE customers. We expect all BT Mobile customers to also have access by the end of this year. Plusnet has the option to take up this service in the future, but it’s not available for customers today.” The operator’s official press release has also been amended to clarify this.