Commuters ask 3G or not 3G?

Commuters can now access a China Unicom 3G signal on subway lines 1 and 2, confirmed Beijing Unicom Tuesday, although some passengers have still complained the signal at some stations and in tunnels is unstable.

Web users posted news of the 3G discovery Tuesday, saying it covered the two lines, but some microbloggers wrote that at some stations, such as Muxidi on Subway Line 1, they could not surf online due to the poor signal.

A media officer from Beijing Unicom, who asked for anonymity, told the Global Times that all stations on subway lines 1 and 2 have been covered by the 3G signal.

"The tunnels are also covered but it's not yet stable," he said, adding that the tunnels are expected to have a stable signal by the end of this year.

The officer refused to elaborate on whether other subway lines could expect to see a 3G service.

But an operator at Beijing Unicom's customer service hotline, who would not give her name, told the Global Times that Unicom 3G signals can be accessed on lines 4 and 15 and the Yizhuang Line on the Beijing subway system.

"The 3G network on lines 1 and 2 is under construction while the other lines have not been covered by 3G signals," she said.

The operator said she had not received any notification that the two lines have been covered by the signal.

"But if passengers discovered it, maybe it's because the construction of the 3G network in some stations has finished," she said.

Hou Jiajing, a resident of Shijingshan district, told the Global Times that she had discovered the Unicom 3G signal on Subway Line 1 this week, although the signal is not consistent.

"I get on the train at Gucheng station and the signal doesn't appear until Wukesong station," she said, "but then it disappears at Nanlishilu station."

However, said Hou, while the Unicom 3G signal was unstable, her other cellphone had shown a good China Mobile 2G signal all the way along Subway Line 1 Tuesday morning.

Spokeswoman Luo Ling from China Mobile Group Beijing, responsible for installing telecom infrastructure into the subway on behalf of China Mobile, could not be reached Tuesday.

An operator at China Mobile's hotline told the Global Times that their 2G signal covers the entire city and the 3G signal basically covers all areas within the Fifth Ring Road.

Hu Xiaoqi, 25, an iPhone 4 user, told the Global Times that although she has got used to having no signal while on her way to work on Subway Line 2 every day, she was looking forward to accessing a strong Unicom 3G signal.

"It's boring during the 20 minutes on the train. Browsing microblogs to read some news is a good way to kill time," she said.

Beijing Subway Line 4 achieved complete coverage of all cellphone signals, including China Unicom 2G and 3G and China Telecom 3G signals when it was completed on September 28, 2009, the Beijing Daily reported.

Beijing Telecom announced that by mid-August, its 2G signal covers 11 subway lines and its 3G signal covers 10 lines, the Xinhua News Agency reported on August 20.

With many residents complaining about the poor cellphone signals in subways, Beijing Communications Administration announced in December 2010 that the city would introduce full coverage of 3G signals in subways in the future, the Beijing Daily reported.

Zeng Jianqiu, professor of Information Economics at Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunication, said that it is understandable that full signal coverage in all subway lines has not been realized quickly.

"The signal coverage in subways is a global problem considering the complicated technical problems," he told the Global Times, adding that installing the equipment in tunnels is harder than it is in subway stations.

Costs and the pace of technology might also be a factor, he said.

"Telecom operators have to negotiate with subway companies to promote the signal coverage, and they might also consider the high costs and the quick update of telecom technology, such as from 2G to 3G and to 4G," he noted.