London to Get City Wide WiFi for 2012 Olympics

21 May 2010

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson has promised that "every lampost and every bus stop will one day very soon, and before the 2012 Olympics, be wi-fi enabled." Speaking at a Google Zeitgeist event held in Hertfordshire, Johnson added London could soon be the technology capital of the world.

"Tim Berners-Lee, who invented the internet, was born in London, so we claim paternity of the internet," the Mayor said. "London is the home of technological innovation. We in City Hall are doing our best to keep up, and one of our most important projects is called Wi-fi London."

According to an Evening Standard report, the Mayor's plans are expected to work by installing thousands of wi-fi hotspots into street lights and bus stops around the capital, with 22 London boroughs already signed up for the scheme. Pricing details have yet to be announced. Last year Swindon Borough Council, working with the private sector, announced plans to make Swindon the first town in the UK to provide free internet access for all its residents by installing a borough wide wi-fi wireless mesh.

During the speech, Boris Johnson also enthused about a new iPhone application in support of the London Cycle Hire Scheme, which will be launched at the end of July."For instance, some bright spark has come up with an iPhone app for our bike hire scheme." More details of the Cycle Hire App can be found here.

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