Optus beefs up signal for Sydney rail passengers

Optus today announced the deployment of new infrastructure on Sydney train lines, claiming that the upgrade will offer uninterrupted service in tunnels for commuters on the North Shore and Western train lines.

Part of the new hardware has been installed in the underground tunnels between Central and Chatswood stations. Optus is also planning future expansions to cover all underground sections of Sydney's City Circle rail line.

This expansion is a small part of planned network upgrades across the country, with plans to build out the current Optus 3G network in regional centres and capital cities, plus add Long Term Evolution (LTE) sites as Optus prepares for a wider launch of its 4G network. This new network capability has already been switched on in Newcastle and parts of the Greater Hunter and Port Stephens, where Optus is currently testing the 4G network and working with customer feedback to plan the next phase of the network roll-out.

This announcement follows on from an agreement made between Optus and Vodafone Hutchinson Australia (VHA) to share network infrastructure. Announced in May, this agreement will add 1000 VHA sites to the Optus network; a 20-percent increase in the telco's network to be completed by 2015.