A TECHNOLOGY firm has extended a deal to deliver WiFi on Canadian trains.

Nomad Digital, headquartered in Newcastle, is working with operator VIA Rail.

Bosses say the agreement means passengers can access films, news and sport through handheld devices while on the move.

The partnership builds on a previous five-year contract and will cover VIA’s full passenger rail fleet, which transports more than 1.5 million people every year to places such as Toronto, Ottawa, Québec and Montreal.

Nomad was previously awarded a contract by Hitachi Rail Europe, which is building rolling stock at its £82m factory in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.

Hitachi chose Nomad to fit on-board server systems for its fleet of Intercity Express Programme trains, which will replace stock on the East Coast and Great Western lines.

The servers provide a single gateway for transmission of all operational data between the train and the trackside, including information on how the train is performing, energy consumption and seat reservations.

Nomad also recently secured a deal with Swiss-based trainbuilder Stadler, to supply WiFi for stock across Switzerland, Italy, Germany and Austria.