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There are few things more humbling (and maddening) than watching your text stubbornly refuse to send somewhere between Brooklyn and Manhattan. But that long-running dead-zone purgatory is starting to shrink.
Thanks to a continued rollout led by AT&T and Boldyn Networks, cellular service is now live in additional tunnel segments across the Metropolitan Transportation Authority system, meaning you can actually scroll, text and even tell your friends you’ll “be there in 10” (wink, wink) while underground.
The latest expansion lights up parts of the 4 and 5 lines between Bowling Green and Fulton Street, as well as the G train between Bedford-Nostrand Avenues and Hoyt-Schermerhorn Streets. Thanks to November’s launch of G train service between Court Square and Bedford-Nostrand, riders now have continuous service on the 4/5 between Borough Hall and Fulton Street and on the G from Court Square all the way to Hoyt-Schermerhorn.
If you’re counting, that’s now five major stretches of tunnel where your phone should now behave like it’s above ground, including full 5G connectivity.
“AT&T is proud to be the first to connect and go fully on-air between these major 4/5 lines and G line segments,” said John Emra, president of AT&T’s Northeast region, in a press release. “Working closely with Boldyn Networks, we’re expanding reliable 5G connectivity underground and improving the rider experience in the nation’s largest transit system.”
This builds on earlier milestones, including service in the Joralemon Street tunnel and additional portions of the G line. It’s all part of a much bigger plan that will eventually bring cell coverage across the subway system’s full 418 miles of track. (Ambitious, for sure, but for once, the timeline seems to be moving since the project was first announced in 2022.)
“This kind of progress doesn’t happen without great partners,” Ken Ranger, SVP of transit operations at Boldyn Networks, said in a release. “AT&T has been fully committed to turning on service for riders as fast as possible and the MTA has been an exceptional partner in keeping work moving quickly.”
For now, coverage is still rolling out in phases and not every carrier is live everywhere yet. But if your commute runs through these newly connected segments, you might notice something strange on your next ride: your phone just works—and honestly, it’s about time.