Tube commuters will be tracked through their mobile phones as they travel the London Underground network in a four-week trial that started on November 21.
By using signals sent from mobiles to the network’s free wi-fi, Transport for London (TfL) hopes to better analyse how people move through stations and interchange between services. This insight could be used to prevent overcrowding.
Data from phones carried by people travelling through 54 stations within Zones 1 to 4 will be used in the trial.
At present, TfL can only tell where people enter and exit the Underground network, but not the routes they take.
“This short trial will help us understand whether wi-fi connection data could help us plan and operate our transport network more effectively for customers.
“Historically, if we wanted to know how people travelled we would have to rely on paper surveys and manual counting, which is expensive, time-consuming and limited in detail and reliability. We hope the results of this trial will enable us to provide customers with even better information for journey planning and avoiding congestion,” TfL’s chief technology officer Shashi Verma said in a report published in Ilford Recorder.
Some of the 54 stations included in the trial include Aldgate, Chancery Lane, Charing Cross, Holborn, Liverpool Street, Moorgate, Monument, Tower Hill and London Bridge.
