How does a bus charter service help you stay connected? The answer lies in technology. Just when you thought you’d heard it all … there is a brand new phobia on the ever-expanding continuum of anxiety disorders. This new phobia plagues its sufferers with a morbid fear of—get this—being without technology. We are not making this up. Atechagoraphobia is real. And someone you love may have it. Actually, you may have it. Ask yourself a few simple questions:
- Do you feel uneasy (or do you actually start to panic) when your smartphone is out of your sight for even a moment?
- Does your heart race if you are asked to turn off your mobile device, or if you lose your signal, or if your battery dies?
- Would you hesitate (or even refuse) to go camping, or sailing, or into outer space if you knew you would not have an internet connection while you were there?
If you answered “yes” to one or more of these questions, you may be suffering from Atechagoraphobia. You are not alone. The only known cure is 24-7 connectivity. Fortunately for you, that can be arranged.
Plugged In
Twenty years ago, traveling meant being incommunicado for hours at a time. Everyone understood that to be in transit was to be out of touch. The moment you arrived at your destination—airport, train station, or bus terminal—you and your fellow passengers would make a mad dash for the payphones (remember those?), where you’d fumble in your pockets for a quarter so you could call home or the office.
Ten years later, most payphones had quietly disappeared. Everyone—and everyone’s grandmother—had a cell phone. With wireless technology already in place, it wasn’t long before travelers wanted more. If they could talk and text in transit, why couldn’t they also access e-mail, social media, and the rest of the internet? Wi-Fi “hotspots” started popping up in public places. At first, public internet access was a novelty—and it often came at a price. Today, wireless internet access is a fairly standard amenity, and users expect it to be free. A study by the Chaddick Institute at DePaul University found that the availability of Wi-Fi—or the absence of it—makes a difference to travelers choosing a mode of transportation. Bus companies have responded by integrating mobile Wi-Fi into their fleets so that their technology-dependent passengers can stay connected while they ride.
Wi-Fi in motion
First, some definitions: