Can Public Trains Be A Return-To-Office Perks?

ON THE NEWS

The article Train Wi-Fi Can Be Terrible. Operators Are Looking High and Low for Solutions by Isabelle Bousquette (Wall Street Journal, Aug 30, 2023) talks about improved Wi-Fi on board trains, using either 5-G networks or low-earth-orbit satellites.

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Yet another Economics

DOODLE

Let's offer the improved Wi-Fi on board trains as an incentive for Work-from-home (WFH) aficionados to return to the office (RTO). The start of their RTO days will be when they board the trains, not when they swipe their badge to enter the buildings. With the enhanced and secure Wi-Fi, once on board, they open their laptop and start working. Likewise, they can leave earlier at the end of the day and finish their work on the train. Assuming one hour on the train each way, they will gain two hours each day - not bad for RTO.

The train operators may offer special carriages for RTO workers, such as dedicated Wi-Fi, tables for laptops, and even privacy enclosures. The operators will charge extra of course, and companies will cover the extra charges for their employees as an RTO benefit.