Why there is no cell service in Westlake tunnel

It has always annoyed me that I don’t have cell service while waiting for the bus at Westlake Station (downtown Seattle). Many times the bus or I will be late and I need to tell someone I’m not going to be on time but I have to wait until the bus arrives and gets me out of the tunnel. Or I could leave the tunnel on my own and risk missing the bus and being even later.

Yes, it’s in a tunnel 80 (?) feet underground but I put in my own microcell in the middle of a field in Idaho something like 30 miles from the nearest cell tower and have good service for myself and my Boomershoot “customers” using AT&T. Why couldn’t the cell companies get service 80 feet?

Now I know the answer:

The reason you don’t have cell coverage in Westlake Station is because the Three Stooges refused to allow the carriers to ride on the radio system without paying substantial fees for the privilege. Verizon, T-Mobil, Sprint, et al gave a collective “Eff You” to the Stooges when they demanded the fees, and now the populace is denied cell coverage.

Governments don’t have customers to make happy. They have subjects.

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10 thoughts on “Why there is no cell service in Westlake tunnel

  1. Pingback: Quote of the Day - Anonymous (01/08/2012) - The Minuteman

    • No. It’s only AT&T and I have to explicitly enable each telephone number to be supported.

      Primarily I wanted cell service so I could receive calls/texts from people that got lost or were looking for someone and to make emergency calls out if needed (we have never needed to call emergency services but I want to be able to).

      But in specific regard to Verizon at Boomershoot they have service there so my micro-cell is not needed if you have a Verizon phone.

  2. On further reflection, I suppose this is why some cell carriers work inside the Los Angeles County Central Courthouse and others do not.

    Isn’t this what was known as Tuchta in the Soviet Union? Graft? The Bite?

    • Nope. No pay phones, no emergency buttons to press, no bathrooms, and only room for a handful of people to sit down. Very spartan conditions.

      • Can you use “the system” against them, by threatening to sue them because they are deliberately isolating everyone from any emergency communications due to their policy?

      • There are a few emergency buttons in the tunnel that connect to Metro’s emergency line. They’re located on the walls by the map & schedule boards.

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