Free wireless will be coming to two local airports in the spring, according to airports officials. Both Ronald Reagan Washington National and Washington Dulles International airports currently provide wireless access but users need to pay for it by the day if they don't already have a subscription with one of the carriers.
However, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which manages the airports, is working to make the service free by the spring, officials said Wednesday.
They still have to work out some contractual details, officials said.
Most business travelers have their own wireless services, said MWAA spokeswoman Courtney Mickalonis, making the current policy not an issue for them. But she said the rest of travelers have been asking about adding the service.
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, meanwhile, has wireless but not for free. "That is something we continue to examine and explore," said spokesman Jonathan Dean.
The airports are the latest transportation systems to expand Internet offerings. Amtrak announced this summer that it plans to expand its Wifi service, while intercity bus companies such as Greyhound's Bolt Bus have been using it as a selling point to attract riders. Virginia Railway Express has told its riders it plans to add Wifi to all its commuter trains by late spring.
Meanwhile, Metro is expanding its cellphone service as part of a deal with Congress. It must have service in all its tunnels and stations by fall 2012. Officials have said the $40 million contract with national carriers Sprint Nextel, AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless eventually will give the system wireless capabilities.
