If that signified a turning point for New York's subway system to enter the 21st Century, the pace has been sadly slow in the past few years.

In April 2013, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that 30 additional underground stations would have cellphone service, bringing the total to 36. It was the first time that the signal was available in the Times Square station, probably the busiest among all of the subway system's 468 stations.

And in October last year, it was announced that 40 additional subway stops, on top of the previous 36, would offer cellular and mobile data access by the year-end.

The remaining underground subway stations are slated to receive cell and Internet services by 2017. By the way, that means the stations, not the tunnels. There seems to be no plan so far to provide cellphone connectivity to the complete subway system.

One friend who is angry about that situation complained that it is because the rich and powerful in New York have their own cars or take cabs, and rarely use the subway.

New York is not alone. Washington, the nation's capital, also provides cellular service only in the stations, not when trains go into tunnels.

I became a bit desperate last week not just because I was unable to tell my friend I would be late for our meeting, but also because I could sense the despair people must feel when they really need to make an emergency call or stay closely connected with the world above.

The author is deputy editor of China Daily USA. chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com