Vancouver, British Columbia, has partnered with Shaw Communications (TSX:SJR.B) to expand free public WiFi throughout the city. Speed will generally be 10 Mbps with no limit or cap on data usage.
About 550 free public WiFi locations are currently active, with the remaining locations scheduled to become active over the coming months. Free public WiFi is also available at all Vancouver Public Library locations, 27 community centers, four outdoor pools, four civic facilities, three public golf courses, three theatres, two marinas and the City Hall campus.
After 42 locations were equipped with #VanWiFi in 2015, Shaw was chosen for the second phase in 2016 to provide WiFi at 15 locations, including all nine city-owned social housing sites and six outdoor sites, expanding the existing #VanWiFi network at no cost to the city. In addition to the 15 locations requested by the city as part of the phase two #VanWiFi expansion, the Shaw offering also includes an additional 500 plus WiFi locations throughout the downtown core and surrounding areas.
"Shaw's expansion of #VanWiFi is a huge win for our residents and businesses, covering more than 500 locations in the downtown core and surrounding areas," said Mayor Gregor Robertson. "People are more digitally connected than ever, and good public WiFi access enables locals and visitors to more easily connect and interact online and supports Vancouver's tourism and economic success. This massive digital infrastructure expansion also bolsters Vancouver's status as a leading smart city."