LinkNWK to Provide Mobile Kiosks

What does Newark have in common with New York City, Philadelphia and London? Wi-Fi kiosks

Newark will be the fourth city that the Link smart city program provides with its services, which include a variety of digital capabilities that will run over the Newark Fiber network. LinkNWK (pronounced Link Newark), as the program will be known, is a network of sidewalk kiosks that will provide free Wi-Fi, mobile device charging, free phone calls in the U.S., access to municipal services, access to maps and directions, and real-time local information. All services will be free to Newark residents and visitors.

The LinkNWK plan calls for 45 kiosks to be installed all over the city, in every ward. They will be built around Newark Penn Station and the Prudential Center; along neighborhood corridors including Clinton Avenue, Ferry Street, South Orange Avenue and Bloomfield Avenue; and along Broad and Market Streets, and Martin Luther King and Irvine Turner Boulevards.

The program will be supported through digital advertising hosted through the kiosks, which is expected to cover the cost of building, installing, maintaining and upgrading the system. The digital advertising is also expected to generate revenue for the city of Newark and help fund future smart infrastructure programs. dN

—Rose Driscoll