Free wi-fi access is common in the US but here in the UK we’re not so lucky - unless you live in Islington that is. I went for a trip up the Northern Line on Saturday to check out the borough council’s free wi-fi zone, available from Angel Tube Station to The Odeon cinema on Holloway Road, and to judge whether it’s worthy of the name Technology Mile.

Arriving in Islington at around lunch time and looking forward to an afternoon’s free browsing, I wanted to find a quite pub or cafe, with a table for me and my laptop. The King’s Head, on Upper Street, beckoned. After settling in with my Diet Coke, I attempted to locate Streetnet, the name of free local area network, but (ominously) with no luck. I finished my drink and left.

Walking back toward Angel, and I spotted a franchise of the uber-progressive Starbucks. Surely, they’d be able to help? Indeed, but only at £5 a go for an hours worth of connectivity! No thanks.

Next up, still after my need of a drink and an internet connection, The York pub, right next to Angel tube station and on the edge of the Technology Mile. I’d been advised that this was the place where all my free connectivity dreams could come true… And yes, you’ve guessed it, it wasn’t my day. I immediately popped over the road to the Nag’s Head. Nader! I was now at rock bottom.

Bar staff at both these pubs advised me that wi-fi was not available. Both pubs are in the heart of Islington, next to Angel and surely within the designated zone.

I spoke to Islington Council’s Una Darrer, who has some responsibility for the Technology Mile, this morning and put to her my disappointment. Una’s advice was that the service was best accessed from the outside and not inside. She suggested that users should sit outside a cafe or on Islington Green. Una was suprised that I could not access the web from The King’s Head but questioned the level of knowledge toward the service. Islington Council, she said, have actively promoted the service to the business community. However, Una did point out that the staff I spoke to could have been new, temporary and unrepresentative of the majority. Perhaps the council are only communicating with business owners and managers, and not to the people who serve customers on a daily basis.

I will return to the Technology Mile and hope for better results. Wi-fi can only be exciting when it is accessible.