Free Wi-Fi launched at Gatwick Airport station

Credit: Network Rail

Fast, free and reliable Wi-Fi has been rolled out at Gatwick Airport station as part of a series of improvements to enhance facilities for passengers.

Free Wi-Fi

The new service has been extended into the station from Gatwick Airport’s public Wi-Fi and will provide passengers with seamless connectivity as they move between the airport and station concourse and will allow them to benefit from unlimited browsing when travelling.

Other improvements made to the station include the recent introduction of 12 new customer information screens (CIS) which provide a higher quality display showing passengers the next fastest train, platform number, stopping pattern and train operator. Three ticket gates with wider barriers have also been installed at the station entrance which will help reduce congestion and improve passenger flow.

“Over the past few years, the teams have been really busy improving station facilities at Gatwick Airport station,” Katie Frost, Sussex Route Director for Network Rail, said. “It’s great to see the wider programme of work coming together to upgrade the station, improve accessibility and create more space for passengers, making their journey from the train to the plane easier. The Wi-Fi will help passengers keep better connected and allow them to have a more relaxing and comfortable journey when heading to their onward destinations. Looking ahead, the project team are gearing up to reopen platforms five and six early next year which have been closed since November 2020.”

Station enhancements

In April, a special assistance point was created for those with reduced mobility, visual impairments, pushchair users and travellers with luggage to make their journeys more comfortable. The area includes accessible desks, benches, and induction loops for those using hearing aids.

“It’s encouraging to start seeing the enhancements being made to the station through this project, including a new ticket retail space, the much-improved assistance point, and a larger concourse,” David Stronell, Station Change Manager at Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), said. “We are now able to offer a seamless Wi-Fi experience from plane to train due to the great collaboration between GTR, Gatwick Airport Limited and the project team. We would like to thank all our customers for their understanding while these much-needed works are undertaken and look forward to the opening of the new concourse in 2023.”

“The installation of Wi-Fi as part of the Gatwick station project scope has been another real example of top-notch collaboration between the Gatwick station project, GTR and Gatwick Airport,” Michelle Stanton, Business Change Manager for Gatwick Airport, said. “With a combined focus on the passenger experience, the team has extended Gatwick Airport’s public Wi-Fi into the station at concourse level. This ensures passengers arriving and departing by train have a seamless Wi-Fi service for the whole of their airport/station journey. The new Wireless Access Points (WAPs) installed by Gatwick Airport’s IT team and using the GSP’s cabling infrastructure are the first WAPs which will be connected to the Airport’s brand-new Wi-Fi controller.”

Along with improvements to the existing concourse, a new station entrance and second concourse is being built, platforms widened, and eight new escalators, five new lifts (see below) and four new stairways added.

Lift shafts on Platforms 5 & 6 and airport entrance concourse deck. Credit: Network Rail