QUEENS — Residents can now connect to the Internet with a library card.
The Queens Library is lending out free mobile hot spots that provide Internet access for up to five Wi-Fi devices at once, according to Joanne King, a library spokeswoman.
Funding for the initiative came from various nonprofits as well as Google, which donated $1 million.
The program seeks to provide access to the Internet to those New Yorkers who might not have broadband.
"Far too many New Yorkers do not have regular access to the Internet and, as a result, find themselves excluded from a wealth of education, employment and community resources," said Ben Fried, Google's CIO, in a statement.
First-time borrowers will have to sign an agreement and present a photo ID, in addition to presenting a Queens library card.
Cardholders will be able to keep the wireless devices, powered by Sprint, for up to four months, library officials said.
The Queens Library currently has about 500 hot spots that readers can borrow from three branches — Central Library in Jamaica, Forest Hills and Far Rockaway, the library said.
Staring Dec. 5, hot spots will also be available at the Flushing branch and, on Dec. 12, the Jackson Heights branch.
Those locations, the library said, will lend Google tablets as well.
By the end of the year, 2,000 wireless devices will be accessible to Queens residents as part of the pilot program, which will be available for at least a year, the library said.
Cardholders must be 18 to check out hot spots, though children aged 12 and older can also borrow wireless devices with parental consent.
The citywide initiative also includes the Brooklyn Public Library and the New York Public Library.
