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Purple launches partnership with Dallas Area Rapid Transit

By Richard Ellor
2 November 2022
3 min read
Purple launches partnership with Dallas Area Rapid Transit
Public transit engineering toolEN 50155 • RFC 8908 • Passpoint • CIPA compliant

Public transit WiFi capacity & passenger fleet planner

Calculate simultaneous passenger concurrency, multi-carrier 5G backhaul sizing, ruggedized access point density, and monthly first-party CRM acquisition for municipal buses, passenger rail, and transit stations.

160 units
10400800 units
220,000 riders
5k250k500k riders
55%
15%50%85% active
28 mins
10m45m90 mins
11 %
7%18%30%
38 trips
23060 trips
6 %
1%20%40%
Supports audio streaming, social media, web browsing, and business applications.
Packet-level SD-WAN bonding across three or four concurrent cellular modems.
Concurrent connected devices
8,385
Avg 52 devices per transit unit
Aggregate fleet WAN throughput
12.58 Gbps
79 Mbps per vehicle active load
Backhaul capacity utilization
17%
Healthy backhaul headroom
EN 50155 industrial AP count
160 units
3,600 W total PoE+ power budget
Monthly CRM passenger opt-ins
2,178
5,732 first-time riders of 95,526 monthly · 5,808 micro-surveys
Passenger mobile data covered
$54,237/mo
301,318 GB carried for riders

Ruggedized EN 50155 mobile RF and multi-carrier backhaul architecture

Transit rolling stock requires specialized hardware to withstand continuous vibration, shock, fluctuating DC electrical voltages, and extreme thermal conditions between -40°C and +70°C.

EN 50155 & EN 45545-2 complianceAll onboard access points and mobile routers must carry EN 50155 railway shock/vibration certification and EN 45545-2 fire and smoke hazard compliance. M12 X-coded threaded Ethernet connectors prevent cable detachment during rail car coupling.
Aerodynamic rooftop MIMO antennasDeploy low-profile radome rooftop antenna pods combining 4x4 5G cellular, 4x4 WiFi, and active GNSS positioning. IP69K sealing protects against automated rail and bus wash facilities.
20 MHz channel width containmentTo prevent co-channel interference between adjacent train carriages, lock 5 GHz radios to 20 MHz channel widths. Restricting channel width delivers 14 non-overlapping channels across carriages and maximizes signal-to-noise ratio in metallic passenger tubes.
Useful? Link to this tool

The strategic partnership aims to increase DART's customer record collection, and the quality of the data by implementing Purple's Guest WiFi solution, a branded captive portal, and collecting real-time customer insights with additional WiFi Analytics. 

Purple and Dallas Area Rapid Transit announced today that the companies have entered into a long-term business relationship focused on creating key contacts and demographic information enabling them to understand their customers and future communication with them.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit has chosen Purple's best-in-class Guest WiFi solution to be implemented in their Dallas transport venue across 300 access points. By utilising Purple's captive portal functionality, DART will personalise splash pages and customers can log in to their WiFi network through a customised form or by using their social media credentials.

The new partnership brings together two leading market providers to enhance modern public transit services and improve the customer experience enabling a safe and fast WiFi network while analysing data to make informed decisions. With Purple's captive portal functionality DART will be able to manage every step of the WiFi experience to enrich their CRM records with unique and valuable data from over 220,000 daily passengers that move across their extensive network of rail, bus, and paratransit services.    

“We're extremely proud of Purple's role in Dallas Area Rapid Transit digital transformation with an innovative solution to increase rich customer data. Understanding who their customers are and how they can improve the travel experience unlocks the potential to influence overall customer experience, return rates, and ultimately drive revenue ”. Gavin Wheeldon, Chief Executive of Purple

Robert Beeson, Director of Operations of Landmark Dividend (DART Digital Kiosk Program) commented: “We are excited to be partnering with Purple and look forward to having a positive impact on our customer data collection, travel experience, and venue's operations.

Purple has worked with highly recognised brands in the transport sector including Avanti West Coast, Lincoln Airport, C2C Rail, Big Bus, and Burlington International Airport. Our leading captive portal tool continues to capture valuable insights from millions of WiFi users, enabling transport companies to reach a huge untapped base of visitors and discover opportunities to create mobility options that stimulate the quality of travel across venues.

About Dallas Area Rapid Transit

DART Dallas Area Rapid Transit is a customer of Landmark Dividend, a global leader in the acquisition, development, and management of the real estate and infrastructure. With DART, travellers can easily explore North Texas and go someplace they've never been. From arts and culture to sports, recreation, dining, and special events, DART can get visitors to more places than you can imagine. From hidden gems in every neighbourhood to the trendiest spots in town, every trip can be a new adventure.

Frequently asked questions

How does Dallas Area Rapid Transit provide passenger WiFi across 300 transit access points?

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) deployed Purple guest WiFi software across 300 access points spanning light rail vehicles, transit platforms, city buses, and digital kiosks. By combining onboard multi-carrier cellular routers with centralized cloud management, DART delivers reliable wireless connectivity to over 220,000 daily passengers across North Texas while capturing verified first-party CRM profiles.

Why is EN 50155 certification mandatory for passenger rail access points?

EN 50155 is the international railway electronic equipment standard governing environmental, shock, vibration, and electrical surge specifications. Rail vehicles experience continuous mechanical vibrations and wide temperature swings between -40 degrees Celsius and +70 degrees Celsius. Certified access points utilize M12 threaded circular Ethernet connectors to eliminate loose cables and meet EN 45545-2 fire safety ratings.

How does multi-carrier 5G bonding prevent dead zones along municipal transit corridors?

Single-carrier cellular modems suffer connection drops when buses and trains enter geographic shadow zones, deep rail cuttings, or high-density urban canyons. Multi-carrier bonding combines active SIM cards from two or more tier-one cellular providers inside an industrial SD-WAN gateway. Traffic is distributed at the packet level, ensuring uninterrupted connectivity and failover in under 10 milliseconds.

How does network VLAN segmentation protect train CAD-AVL and electronic ticketing from passenger traffic?

Transit cybersecurity architectures enforce strict four-tier VLAN segregation. Vehicle computer-aided dispatch and automatic vehicle location (CAD-AVL) telemetry operates on an isolated priority VLAN, electronic fare collection and ticket validators run on a separate encrypted VLAN, security CCTV streams over a dedicated video VLAN, and passenger guest WiFi is isolated on VLAN 40 with default-deny firewall rules.

How do transit authorities maintain CIPA and Friendly WiFi compliance on public fleets?

Public transit agencies utilize DNS-layer content filtering solutions such as Purple Shield to block adult content, illegal streaming domains, and malware before packets leave the vehicle gateway. Enforcing automated categorization satisfies the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) in the United States and UK Friendly WiFi standards without introducing latency to passenger browsing.

How does WBA OpenRoaming streamline passenger reconnection across buses and train stations?

Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) OpenRoaming, built on IEEE 802.11u and Passpoint Hotspot 2.0, eliminates the need for repetitive captive portal splash pages. Once a commuter registers their transit profile, cryptographic certificates automatically authenticate their mobile device as they transfer between neighborhood buses, light rail cars, and central transit concourses.

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