CHARLOTTE, N.C. — You can now use Wi-Fi anywhere in and around uptown.
Time Warner Cable is spending $2 million to put it all over uptown, SouthEnd, Midtown and parts of Dilworth and Myers Park.
It's free for everyone the week before and the week of the DNC.
After the DNC, the Wi-Fi stays put. TWC customers who have the Internet service will be able to keep using it for no extra charge. Non-customers will be able to use it for about $2.95 per hour on up.
Web designer Ryan Duffy seemed really pleased when Eyewitness News told him.
"Being able to be unplugged and outside enjoying the breeze, I do it all the time,” he said.
He also said he ends up spending money at coffee and bagel shops that offer free Wi-Fi. So this could save him money.
"If they do offer free Wi-Fi, you actually have to purchase something,” he said. “So you purchase a coffee or something like that, so it's technically not free. It's an added expense. So having free Wi-Fi that's really free is a major advantage."
"To have access to this system for free, that's amazing,” Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx said.
"We're sending a very clear message that we're staying ahead in technology and innovation and access,” N.C. Speaker of the House Thom Tillis said.
"These will bring benefits like higher speeds and better accessibility to our network that will live into the future,” TWC Executive Vice President Carol Hevey said.
There should be a lot of online traffic uptown during the DNC. Hevey said TWC can handle that.