The number of Wi-Fi access points in Vitebsk will increase

Modern people can no longer imagine life without the Internet. It allows us to instantly find the information we need, solve important issues, and simply stay in touch with different people. For most of us, home and mobile internet have become commonplace. But what about when traveling? This is a question that guests of Vitebsk are surely asking themselves when planning to visit the northern capital. And with the arts festival "Slavyansky Bazaar", the number of visitors will significantly increase. Will wireless internet be available to them, and will they find themselves cut off from their usual life in the information space and social networks?

We turned to Alexander Bokhan, director of the Vitebsk branch of RUP "Beltelecom", for comments. As Alexander Ivanovich reported, there are currently 5200 Wi-Fi access points in the northern capital. They are located in hotels, universities, at the bus station, in the Lenin Regional Library, as well as in the area where the festival events are held. It is now planned to increase the number of access points at the railway station to improve communication quality. Work is underway to expand the network at "Belneftekhim" gas stations, 9 of which already have internet and 34 more will be equipped.

– Beltelecom would gladly increase the number of Wi-Fi access points, but in this matter, the desire and capabilities of the owners of plots and facilities are of considerable importance, – explained Alexander Bokhan. – For example, some organizations offer to pay rent for several meters of premises for modem installation, which is unacceptable for us. First of all, they themselves should be interested in the image of their establishment, as the presence of the Internet is one of the ways to attract visitors.

Those who wish to develop and keep up with the times, by contacting a branch, will receive the service in the best possible way. By the way, even a private individual, and currently there are about 255 thousand byfly subscribers, can activate their access point as a public one.

The data presented is impressive. However, sometimes one can find that in a cafe, where a Wi-Fi sticker is displayed on the door, the promised service is nowhere to be found. According to Dmitry Molodtsov, head of the commercial service of the Vitebsk branch of RUP "Beltelecom", this may be due to the fact that owners turn off modems for their own reasons.

We decided to check how wireless internet works on one of the main festival streets – Suvorova – and its surroundings. This part of the city has many cafes for every taste. For example, free access services are provided in the cafes “Schwarzwald” and “Planeta Burger”, the connection quality here is at an excellent level. The signal is slightly worse in “Vitebsky Traktir”, apparently because it is located in an old basement. However, it will not be possible to get online while in the restaurant “Golden Dragon”, but you can use the Internet in “Grand Cafe”, though, only if you have a byfly access card. And these are just a few of the places from which guests of our city can access wireless networks. So, we hope they will feel comfortable here. We advise the owners of food and service establishments who have not yet taken care of Internet access to keep up with modern trends.

Elena Mirer, "Vitebskiye Vesti"