Surfing the Commute

According to this article in adelaidenow.com.au the South Australian Government is considering fitting its public transport networks with free wireless internet.

Would the same idea attract commuters onto public transport in Sydney? Hillsbus seems to think so. According to the article selected Hillsbus routes already offer the free service on their buses.

At $1500 per bus I doubt we'll see the NSW Government shelling out half a million dollars to fit the 300+ new buses on order.

I'd like to see some stats on the cost effectiveness of this idea. I like the idea of providing these types of amenities on public transport - good service quality joined with a few special features like wi-fi might be the formula that gets people on board. Of course having the buses and trains run on time, uncrowded, clean and reliable needs to be locked in first. Maybe the Sydney transport system needs a bit more work before we 'log in'.