A marvel of Victorian engineering and the original gateway to London, today St. Pancras International has been reimagined as a retail and cultural destination. It has a weekly footfall of up to 1 million people and more shops than any other UK railway station. In addition, the station boasts its own fresh produce market, regularly-changing arts installations and the longest Champagne Bar in Europe.
WIFI Metropolis selected the Xirrus Wi-Fi solution as part of a major upgrade to improve the wireless experience for visitors and passengers. The previous Wi-Fi infrastructure could not cope with the density of usage, particularly at peak times in the evening when, between 5pm and 8pm, up to 5,000 devices could be connected to the station’s Wi-Fi network. The robust connectivity offered by Xirrus Wi-Fi also helped to meet the challenge of providing a fast and reliable 5 Ghz wireless service in a Grade One listed building dominated by 19th Century iron columns that absorb and weaken Wi-Fi signals.
“The Xirrus Wi-Fi solution fitted our needs perfectly. You just can’t argue with the underlying high density performance delivered by the company’s multi-radio Access Points,” said Gregory E Smith, CEO at WIFI Metropolis. “To put this in context, the previous Wi-Fi network could handle 200 concurrent connections, but the new Xirrus installation can support 8,000. It’s even more impressive when you consider that the majority of people in the station are using Wi-Fi while on the move, rather than sat in one place - like they might be in an airport lounge or stadium. Xirrus has taken Wi-Fi at St. Pancras International to a completely different level and the solution is second to none in my opinion.”
“Visitors to St. Pancras International are not just standing around waiting for domestic train connections. They come to shop, dine, appreciate art and to start inter-continental journeys,” said Jillian Mansolf, Chief Corporate Officer at Xirrus. “As soon as people step into the station they immediately see that it is a premium destination and they expect a superior Wi-Fi experience. Xirrus has played a key role in bringing an advanced 21st Century Wi-Fi solution to a 21st Century travel and cultural hub and we look forward to a close working partnership with WIFI Metropolis as the project expands in the coming years.”
