Spain’s high speed trains introduce high speed WiFi

Renfe has confirmed that is has teamed up with Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica and will be rolling out high speed internet access on all its AVE services by the end of 2017.

The first WiFi will be available on the Madrid-Seville route from December 5th and Barcelona-Madrid route will become operative by April and all 89 trains on the network connected by the end of next year.

A minimum service (20Mb) will be available free to all passengers subscribed to the +Renfe scheme and those travelling Preferente class with a high speed connection and 100 Mb available for €4.

The PlayRenfe premium service comes via satellite connection and 4G and will offer films and television through a Movistar package.

The Spanish Government continues to invest heavily in high-speed rail. This year alone it is adding some 1,000km of new track allowing the AVE to reach eight further provincial capitals, including Zamora, León, Palencia and Burgos.