TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei Metro will extend its free public Wi-Fi coverage from stations to carriages, starting with the Red Line (Tamsui) and Blue Line (Bannan) in late July and the rest by the end of the year, the Taipei City Department of Information Technology announced July 20.

The DIT said the trial period of onboard Wi-Fi implemented last year had proved successful, and the official launch with the replacement of new networks would improve the quality of internet connection and reduce costs.

The current Wi-Fi hotspot in the MRT stations, Taipei Free, will be replaced by TPE-Free AD WiFi and iTaiwan. The former is provided by Free Ad WIFI (全林實業股份有限公司), a private company, and the latter is set up in collaboration with the National Development Council (國家發展委員會).

TPE-Free AD WiFi offers 30 minutes of Wi-Fi connection per session without verification needed, while iTaiwan requires user login and verification.

However, the transition from Taipei Free to the new networks may cause temporary instability for Wi-Fi connections, said the DIT.