“The city reported listed complaints from the public that the service was not meeting Hamilton residents’ needs and that the infrastructure was outdated and needed to be refreshed. Rather than implementing suggestions from its residents, the city decided to shut down the program entirely.”
Sylvia Peña, the HSR’s communications officer, said that pilot came to an end in March 2020, with no plans to continue or expand the service. “The operating costs to offer free public Wi-Fi on buses, as configured during the pilot, would be significant — particularly if expanded to the entire HSR fleet of buses,” she added. “Mobile wireless data usage rates are very high in Ontario compared to land-based rates.”ACORN Hamilton is also calling on the city to increase the number of parks in which free Wi-Fi is available, particularly in communities where low-income residents live.