The FAA's relaxed stance on passenger use of personal electronic devices throughout all modes of flight showed little change from 2013 to 2014 as use has essentially remained on the tarmac, while commuter rail and intercity bus systems have seen mobile device use soar on the wings of Wi-Fi, according to a new study.
The FAA's announcement last October that freed airlines to expand passenger usage of mobile electronics went into effect in January. But DePaul University's fifth annual survey, "The Personal Tech Tidal Wave: The Rising Use of Electronic Devices on Intercity Bus, Planes & Trains," concludes use of mobile electronics on airplanes has increased by only a small percentage.
DePaul's study, which drew data from 7,034 passengers, reported passenger use of mobile electronics on public transport increased from 46.4 percent to 59.4 percent on discount buses, jumped from 47.8 percent to 54.4 on commuter rail and moved ahead by only 0.7 percent on airlines.
"The change appears to have been greeted unenthusiastically by most travelers, who are still unable to connect to Wi-Fi or 3G/4G systems, send text messages, or place phone calls while in flight," the study stated. "Whereas 35.3 percent were observed using devices at observed points last year, 35.9 percent were observed doing so this year. Most passengers instead opted to devote their time to reading print material, eating, sleeping, and relaxing."
The limited bandwidth and wavering speeds on airplane Wi-Fi dictate a premium price tag for the service, which may explain the minute increase in the use of mobile electronics while flying. Roughly 84 percent of 4,883 passengers surveyed by Holiday Extras in 2013 stated they refused to pay for Wi-Fi service aboard a flight.
With the inability to use cellular communications at any point during a flight and premium price tag glued to inflight Wi-Fi, airline passengers may be using their time in the clouds to escape the interconnectedness on the ground.
Amtrak has been looking to bolster its Wi-Fi service to attract more customers. Matt Hardison, Amtrak's chief marketing and sales officer, believe his company's rail service holds another advantage over airlines.
"The No. 1 advantage that rail has over the airlines is simply that you can use any device you want to bring with you at any time,'' said Hardison. "And of course the fact that we have conventional outlets on all of our trains is a big help for those who want to continue to work or use their devices for other purposes while en route."
The DePaul survey concluded flights were still the mode of transportation that tempted the highest percentage of passengers to engross themselves into a book or a magazine.
Passenger use of tablets and e-readers on airplanes climbed from 10.7 percent to 12.7 percent between 2013 and 2014. Over the same time period, the use of tablets and e-readers moved from 7.8 percent to 10 percent on Amtrak and from 3.1 percent to 4.1 percent on inner city buses.
