VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 19, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The City of Vancouver, in partnership with Shaw Communications Inc., has expanded free public Wi-Fi throughout the city, making #VanWiFi one of the largest free public-Wi-Fi networks in North America.   

“Shaw’s expansion of #VanWiFi is a huge win for our residents and businesses, covering more than 500 locations in the downtown core and surrounding areas,” said Mayor Gregor Robertson. “People are more digitally connected than ever and good public Wi-Fi access enables locals and visitors to more easily connect and interact online and supports Vancouver’s tourism and economic success. This massive digital infrastructure expansion also bolsters Vancouver’s status as a leading Smart City." 

In total, those who live, work or visit Vancouver will have access to free public Wi-Fi at over 600 locations throughout the city.

In 2014, the City implemented a procurement process to solicit applications from telecommunications service providers to provide free public Wi-Fi at no cost to the City. Shaw was one of the vendors selected as ‘Pre-Qualified’ to supply free public internet at identified, and future, locations in Vancouver.

After 42 locations were equipped with #VanWiFi in 2015, Shaw was chosen for the second phase in 2016 to provide VanWiFi at 15 locations, including all nine City-owned social housing sites and six outdoor sites, expanding the existing #VanWiFi network at no cost to the City.

The Granville location is now live with the remaining sites becoming active over the coming months.

In addition to the 15 locations requested by the City as part of the phase two #VanWiFi expansion, the Shaw offering also includes an additional 500 plus Wi-Fi locations spread widely throughout the downtown core and surrounding areas, including the following highly-concentrated spaces: 

• Broadway (Oak to Cambie)
• Commercial Drive (Venables to 1st Ave)
• Davie Street (Jervis to Burrard)
• Denman Street (from Davie to W. Georgia)
• Downtown Eastside
• Gastown
• Granville Street (from Drake to Cordova)
• Main Street (Broadway to E. 16th Ave)
• Robson Street (from Denman to Burrard) 

It also includes 125 Mobi by Shaw Go bike station locations, of which 49 are currently enabled with #VanWiFi provided by Shaw. 

“Like our partners at the City of Vancouver, we understand how important it is to have access to a broadly available Wi-Fi network in the places we frequent the most,” said Jim Little, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Culture Officer, Shaw Communications. “This vast expansion of the #VanWiFi public network will give residents and visitors to Vancouver easy connectivity in the busiest locations across the city, whenever they want and need it for free.” 

Speaking about the expansion, City of Vancouver’s Chief Technology Officer, Jessie Adcock said: “We are pleased to be working with Shaw to provide one of North America’s largest free public Wi-Fi networks, the latest step in our work to create a connected city. Connectivity such as this provides greater opportunities to all of Vancouver’s residents, innovators, businesses and visitors.”

About 550 free public Wi-Fi locations are currently active, with the remaining locations becoming active over the coming months. All locations can be viewed by visiting vancouver.ca/wifi. 

Free public Wi-Fi is also available at all Vancouver Public Library locations, 27 community centres, four outdoor pools, four civic facilities, three public golf courses, three theatres, two marinas and the City Hall campus.

“This is an exciting development for the visitor experience in Vancouver,” said Ted Lee, Tourism Vancouver’s CFO and Commercial Director. “Free Wi-Fi service in key locations will enable visitors to use their smart phones and devices to discover attractions, activities and restaurants, for wayfinding, and to navigate Vancouver’s transportation options.

“It will also better enable visitors to use social media on a real-time basis to share their Vancouver experiences with the world. Furthermore, this is an important development for the Vancouver tourism industry as it moves us closer to our goal of being a ‘smart’ tourism destination. Congratulations to the City of Vancouver and to Shaw for this great partnership.”

Bandwidth speed will generally be 10 Mbps and there is no limit or cap on data usage. No personal information is required to access the VanWiFi network.

To connect to VanWiFi:

• Select the VanWiFi network name from your device’s Wi-Fi settings menu
• Open your browser and you will be automatically re-directed to the Wi-Fi terms and conditions page. Read and then click the button to accept the terms and conditions.
• You will be re-directed to the VanWiFi home page (vanwifi.vancouver.ca) and are then connected to the internet.

The #VanWiFi project is a core component of the City of Vancouver’s Digital Strategy aimed at enhancing the public’s experience within the City through online, mobile and social media channels.

Free and accessible internet connectivity is a fundamental aspect of many digital and Smart City initiatives, which use data and connected technology to address urban issues in new and efficient ways. The recent expansion of the #VanWiFi network with the help of Shaw builds a new public platform for Smart City services and the public’s access to the internet. 

Connecting citizens to mobile  applications like VanConnect, which provides access to City Hall services on the go, is an example of how Vancouver is digitally transforming into a leading Smart City.

Not only is a broadly deployed public Wi-Fi network identified by the Digital Strategy as a key indicator of a digital city, it also aligns with the Tourism Vancouver Master Plan and the Vancouver Economic Action Strategy.

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