Editing Bay Area Rapid Transit (section)

=== Cell phone and Wi-Fi ===
In 2004, BART became the first transit system in the United States to offer [[cell phone|cellular telephone]] communication to passengers of all major wireless carriers on its trains underground.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Michael Cabanatuan |date=November 19, 2005 |title=Underground, but not unconnected – BART offers wireless service to riders |work=San Francisco Chronicle |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/11/19/MNGF2FR6C11.DTL |access-date=January 22, 2007}}</ref> Service was made available for customers of [[Verizon Wireless]], [[Sprint Nextel|Sprint/Nextel]], [[AT&T Mobility]], and [[T-Mobile US|T-Mobile]] in and between the four San Francisco Market Street stations from [[Civic Center (BART station)|Civic Center]] to [[Embarcadero (BART station)|Embarcadero]]. In 2009, service was expanded to include the Transbay Tube, thus providing continuous cellular coverage between [[West Oakland (BART station)|West Oakland]] and [[Balboa Park (BART station)|Balboa Park]].<ref name="wireless_12_21_2009">{{Cite web|title=BART expands wireless access to Transbay Tube &#124; bart.gov|url=https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2009/news20091221b|access-date=November 23, 2022|website=www.bart.gov}}</ref> In 2010, service was expanded to all underground stations in Oakland (19th Street, 12th Street/Oakland City Center, and Lake Merritt).<ref name="wireless_08_27_2010">{{Cite web|title=BART expands wireless network to underground stations in downtown Oakland &#124; bart.gov|url=https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2010/news20100827|access-date=November 23, 2022|website=www.bart.gov}}</ref>

In 2007, BART ran a [[beta test]] of [[Wi-Fi]] Internet access for travelers. It initially included the four San Francisco downtown stations: Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, and Civic Center. It included above ground testing to trains at BART's Hayward Test Track. The testing and deployment were extended into the underground interconnecting tubes between the four downtown stations and further. The successful demonstration provided for a ten-year contract with WiFi Rail, Inc. for the services throughout the BART right of way.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=WiFi Rail Inc. to provide wifi access on BART system |date=February 2009 |publisher=BART |url=http://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2009/news20090202.aspx |access-date=February 2, 2009}}</ref> In 2008, the Wi-Fi service was expanded to include the [[Transbay Tube]].<ref>{{Cite press release |title=WiFi Rail Tube Access |date=June 2009 |publisher=KRON 4 |url=http://www.wifirail.net/clips/kron4.com_061809.mov |access-date=June 18, 2009}}</ref> BART terminated the relationship with Wi-Fi Rail in December 2014, citing that WiFi Rail had not submitted an adequate financial or technical plan for completing the network throughout the BART system.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 30, 2014 |title=BART scraps Wi-Fi contract, prompting threats of legal action |newspaper=Sfgate |url=http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/BART-cuts-Wi-Fi-service-prompting-threats-of-5984611.php |access-date=July 6, 2016 |last1=Williams |first1=By Kale }}</ref>

In 2011, during the [[#Charles Hill|Charles Hill killing and aftermath]] BART disabled cell phone service to hamper demonstrators.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elinson |first=Zusha |date=August 11, 2011|title=BART Cuts Cell Service to Foil Protest |work=The Bay Citizen |url=http://www.baycitizen.org/blogs/pulse-of-the-bay/bart-cut-cell-service-foil-protest/ |url-status=dead |access-date=September 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110817042150/http://www.baycitizen.org/blogs/pulse-of-the-bay/bart-cut-cell-service-foil-protest/ |archive-date=August 17, 2011}}</ref> The ensuing controversy drew widespread coverage<ref name="reuters">{{Cite news |date=March 2, 2012 |title=US regulators seek input on cell phone interruptions |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/fcc-wireless-disruptions-idUSL2E8E2E6M20120303 |access-date=January 2, 2016}}</ref> that raised legal questions about free speech rights of protesters and the federal telecommunications laws that relate to passengers.<ref name="law journal">{{Cite web |last=Rachel Lackert |date=May 1, 2012 |title=BART Cell Phone Service Shutdown: Time for a Virtual Forum? |url=http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1626&context=fclj |access-date=January 2, 2016 |quote=this unilateral action raised significant legal questions as to whether this was authorized under federal telecommunications law relating to the right of the passengers to access the telephone network and the legality of a shutdown by a quasi-governmental authority such as BART. Additionally, BART's actions raised issues concerning the First Amendment rights of the passengers and protesters to freedom of speech and assembly.}}</ref> In response, BART released an official policy on cutting off cell phone service.<ref name="electronic frontier foundation">{{Cite news |date=August 12, 2012 |title=BART's Cell Phone Shutdown, One Year Later |url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/08/barts-cell-phone-shutdown-one-year-later |access-date=January 2, 2016}}</ref>