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WiFi On the Water With Washington State Ferries

Several ferry routes to follow

Washington State Ferries, part of the Washington State Department of Transportation, implemented a pilot of the Washington State Ferries' Wireless Connection Project on the MV Klickitat serving the Port Townsend Keystone ferry route. This is the first stage of a project that will eventually include the Seattle-Bainbridge Island, Edmonds-Kingston and Seattle-Bremerton routes.

Challenges to the project include maintaining wireless connections for several miles over water with a moving vessel while using equipment that would work for any ship or route in the ferry fleet and, at the same time, making it easy for passengers to use without additional software.

Mobilisa Inc. is testing two forms of ship-to-shore wireless communications to determine the best format for the wireless Internet service. Regardless of the mode chosen, both will allow users to surf the Internet, check their e-mail or check the current ferry schedule, all at speeds many times faster than a dialup connection.

"Our goal is to improve the ridership experience," stated Jim Long, Washington State Ferry System's technology director. Commenting on the live test, Long said "it was great and I am quite impressed with the progress so far."

Funding for the project was secured through a research and development grant from the Federal Department of Transportation, largely supported by U.S. Senator Patty Murray.