Urging users to text, not call, and let the crowds thin before posting pics to social media
WASHINGTON – Pope Francis is set to arrive in Washington, D.C., for his inaugural visit to the United States on Sept. 22, and cellular carriers are bracing for what is expected to be a massive spike in demand for coverage.
Pope Francis, whose message of peace and charity has deeply resonated around the world, has a tendency to draw massive crowds. During his trip to Brazil in 2013, the Los Angeles Times estimated that as many as 3 million people gathered at Copacabana for Francis’ Sunday service.
The crowds in D.C. later this month are expected to be comparable. For wireless carriers, the visit is drawing attention to how they provide service during major events, which tend to clog networks, while providing reliable coverage in an era of steady population growth and urbanization.
The question has been compounded by seemingly regular network outages, one as recent as Aug. 4 that saw all four major domestic carriers go dark in particular regions. In hopes of avoiding major outages during Pope Francis’ visit, carriers are taking special precautions.
Sprint regional VP Scott Santi told the press, “We’ve constructed a couple of temporary cell sites; we call them cells on wheels. We’ve also added additional radio capacity to all of our surrounding cell sites in the area the Pope will be traveling.”
T-Mobile US, AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless also have made numerous modifications to their networks including adding temporary cell sites. In addition, technicians have been given security clearance by the Secret Service to fix troubled cell sites that may be within areas with restricted access.
“This is massive,” T-Mobile VP for the Northeast Terry Hayes told WTOP in Washington, D.C. “This is going to be that many people – over miles. There’ll be people in the events and then there’ll be people trying to get toward the events. We’re splitting cell sites to make sure that congested areas have different sectors that are serving them.”
Despite these efforts, there is concern that problems will arise. As Santi noted, “Having that many people in a small area, I don’t think any carrier is going to be able to completely, 100% satisfy all the requirements immediately.”
Carriers are urging customers to try to text as much as possible rather than place calls, and to wait until the crowds have dispersed before uploading their glimpses of the Pontiff to social media.
