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The operator has partnered with the tower giant to extend its mobile coverage across the busy train line
This week, O2 has sign a new agreement with tower operator Cellnex to join the Brighton Main Line (BML) connectivity project.
The partnership will see O2 deploy mobile network equipment on Cellnex’s infrastructure along the BML, improving connectivity for thousands of passengers.
The BML connectivity project began in 2021, when Cellnex won a contract with Network Rail to deploy neutral host infrastructure across the 108km BML.
Cellnex subsequently deployed a wide range of neutral host infrastructure including: 130 km of high-capacity fibre; four Base Station Hotels to host mobile network operator equipment; 39 Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) within tunnels and along trackside locations; a dedicated station DAS at London Bridge, London Victoria and Clapham Junction; and 16 macro sites along the railway route.
Mobile operators leveraging this infrastructure will be able to provide coverage across 99% of the 108km route, which serves over 300,000 rail passengers every weekday.
In addition to boosting mobile coverage, the infrastructure will also eventually support the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS), an international wireless standard that will deliver connectivity services for the railway operators themselves, including the management and interoperation of signalling.
In partnering with Cellnex, O2 joins its rival Three (now VodafoneThree), which signed up to the project in 2023.
“Regular railway passengers will understand the frustration of losing signal mid-conversation or spending whole journeys with buffering videos. With O2 now on board, many more passengers are going to notice the difference on one of the UK’s most important commuter routes,” said Steve Cray, Managing Director of Cellnex UK.
The timeline for the improvements to O2’s network was not specified, but Professor Robert Joyce, Director of Mobile Access Engineering at O2, said that coverage and capacity will be improved “in the coming months”.
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