Wi-fi is to be made available to Northern Ireland coach and rail passengers, for free.

Translink said a roll-out of on-board access to the internet is "imminent".

The company would join transport providers including ScotRail, Transport for London and Transport for South Hampshire in providing a free wi-fi service.

Sinn Fein MLA Chris Hazzard said the news came after his own question to the regional development minister Danny Kennedy.

Mr Hazzard said: "It is important that if we are to promote public transport that we have the latest technologies that will encourage people to switch from private transport.

"I am delighted that the Minister has decided to roll this free of charge service out across Goldline and Railway Services in the Translink fleet.

"The Gold Liner Service that runs between major towns and cities across the North will become more attractive to commuters with the installation of Wi-Fi.

"This will allow people to connect to the Internet and other devices so that they can work or simply browse the Internet during their journey. While this is also possible while travelling in the car without a dedicated Wi-Fi connection it is very slow and unreliable and therefore very frustrating if you are attempting to download files.

"I look forward to seeing this initiative being rolled out in the time ahead and being promoted in order to get more people to use public transport which is more environmentally friendly."

(NE)