Icomera Tests Starlink for WiFi on Trains in the Artic Circle

Not to be outdone by ScotRail’s 2024 test of LEO Satellite-delivered broadband to trains in the far North of Scotland, Icomera has been busy trialing WiFi connectivity using Starlink satellite Services in Sweden’s Artic Circle. Of course, US newcomer to the train scene, Brightline, was the first transport company to commercially employ Starlink to supply high-speed WiFi on its trains, but Icomera was keen to try the option across a more sparsely-populated part of the world.

Given the lack of mobile phone masts strung out across the tundra up near Lapland, it would seem that satellite networks, such as Starlink, might offer a compelling solution for train connectivity, especially as its coverage of northern altitudes improves.

So it was that Icomera sent a hardy team of researchers to assess the potential of modern satellite services along a 970km swathe of frozen rails around the Artic Circle. The route used runs from Umeå to Vilhelmina in Sweden’s Norrland region and the company employed one of its own X5 routers in conjunction with a Starlink Flat, High-Performance terminal. Connectivity along the remote route was measured via both satellite and 5G cellular, where available. The Norrland region makes up about 60% of Sweden’s landmass but is home to only 12% of its population.

In total, data was recorded from 50,000 Starlink connections and 23,000 cellular ones, reflecting the relative lack of mobile towers that far out in the sticks.

The results show that, in terms of throughput, Starlink was some way ahead of 5G – in that it regularly delivered speeds up to ten times higher than the cellular network. As a caveat, Icomera’s researchers noted that Starlink’s lowest recorded measurements delivered less throughput than cellular.

As for connectivity gaps, it became clear that despite the fact that the test area was outside Starlink’s main coverage area, the satellite system still shone in terms of overall performance. On the other hand, cellular networks provided more consistent baseline throughput, though they struggled to match Starlink’s bandwidth capabilities and overall coverage.

The clear conclusion seems to be that a hybrid solution combining cellular, where available, and LEO satellite services where masts are missing is the key to almost complete coverage in remote areas. As the research team put it “By simultaneously aggregating Starlink and terrestrial cellular connectivity, one network could fill in for the other whenever its connection dropped, offering consistent availability across the route. During this test, the combination of both networks provided a stable Internet connection capable of offering video streaming for over 99% of the route.” 

The Icomera test results reflect those from other recent trials of LEO satellite connectivity to trains, which have also been impressive. Most have been delivering the equivalent of inner-city 5G capacity to trains in rural environments with throughput consistently in the range of 200+Mbps and some tests demonstrating a latency of less than 40 milliseconds.

5G and trackside rail communications as well as LEO satellite delivered broadband to trains will be the focus of this year’s Traincomms Conference in London (www.Traincomms.com ).

Traincomms 2025 is sponsored by Huber+Suhner, Westermo, Antonics, Galgus, Icomera and Nomad.

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For more information on speaking, sponsoring and attending the 2025 Conference please contact [email protected]