Together with project partners Deutsche Bahn, Ericsson and Vantage Towers, the operator has started building a network along a test track.
The project is being built in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on which Telefónica will test 5G connections for rail passengers. The project is dubbed Gigabit Innovation Track, or GINT. The company says that so far 13 mobile masts have been erected.
The ten-kilometre track is located between Kraków in Poland and Malchow in Germany. The gigabit project is supported by the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure which has supplied €6.4 million in funding.
Telefónica says it is testing new mast concepts which can more easily be erected alongside the railway track. It is also using the 3.6 GHz band on the masts, which will cover a distance of 500 meters to 1 kilometre.
The track is due for completion by the end of 2023, after which the Deutsche Bahn will conduct testing and trials.
