Verizon’s ‘can you hear me now’ fleet testing 4G

Verizon Wireless has equipped almost all of its fleet of test vehicles with 4G (fourth-generation) devices to test all the
major U.S. 4G networks for speed and coverage.

The carrier has about 100 such vehicles around the U.S., and testers drive about 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers)
per year while conducting ongoing network tests, said Tom Badger, director of network system performance. Verizon commercially
launched its own 4G LTE (Long-Term Evolution) network last December, and it now covers more than 160 cities. Some Verizon
trucks have already been testing 4G networks, but the carrier is now set to study those networks across the country, along
with ongoing 3G testing.

Verizon’s archrival, ATT, started commercial service on its own LTE network in five cities just last month. MetroPCS began
rolling out LTE last September. Though Verizon didn’t weigh in on the heated issue of what qualifies as a 4G network, Badger
said the trucks test 4G and 3G networks including those of ATT, T-Mobile USA, Sprint Nextel, Clearwire (Sprint’s 4G partner),
MetroPCS and Cricket, depending on which operators offer service in the local market.

On the sidelines of the CTIA Wireless Enterprise Applications trade show in San Diego on Wednesday, Verizon showed off a
Chevrolet Tahoe truck used to test networks in the San Diego area and nearby Imperial Valley. There are five test vehicles
in the Southern California region, stretching from Ventura in the north to Mexico in the south, Verizon said. Those vehicles
travel about 7,400 miles (11,909 kilometers) each quarter, and along the way make the equivalent of 29,000 voice calls and
142,000 data calls.

Shawn Bowers, the Verizon technician who drives the Tahoe as a full-time tester, said he travels over state and interstate
highways, on residential streets and through downtown areas evaluating network quality. The routes are determined by U.S.
Census data. The truck is equipped with four-wheel drive because it is a standard vehicle used across the country by Verizon.
The feature can help in areas with snow, Bowers said, adding that he hasn’t had occasion to use it in the sunny southern territory
he drives.