How cool is this? This is a smart move and will probably increase ridership:

The trains from Worcester to Boston will not be moving any faster, but starting in the middle of this week, passengers will be able to surf the Web on their laptops, iPhones and hand-held PDAs as the MBTA starts a free high-speed Wi-Fi Internet service.
The pilot program, one of the first of its kind in the country, will be tested on the Worcester-Framingham-Boston commuter trains with the hope of soon installing it on all 13 commuter rail lines in the state.
Initially, at least one car per train will provide free wireless fidelity, or Wi-Fi, service to passengers.

They better expand that fast or that car will be pretty full!
Here are some of the emails that they received while testing the service:

“Awesome! Keep it going! This is a great idea. So far the network seems pretty fast. Might change when there are more riders connected,” said one rider.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” read the subject line from Alec, who picked up the signal on a train from Boston to Providence while passing through Attleboro during a test on Jan. 18.
“Hello from an ecstatic rider on the Providence/Boston line,” he wrote. “I work with European clients, so being able to work on the train as I’m heading in would be extremely valuable — an extra hour with the time zone thing.” He said he turned on his laptop and found a very strong signal on the “ridership connection.”

What a great way to combine your commute with work :

“What does this mean?” he added. “I can leave the house later and start work on the train, spending more time with my kids. I can leave work earlier and work on the train to again spend more time with my family. … This gives me a one-up on the competition. Seriously thank you!!”

(via)