Overhaul for public safety radio
Officials say Ontario’s system is one of largest in North America, but not in compliance with standards
By Dave Flaherty/The Oshawa Express
The provincial Ford government has released plans to update the network responders rely on during emergency situations.
The Public Safety Radio Network is used by more than 38,000 front-line and emergency responders, including OPP, fire services, paramedics, highway maintenance staff and enforcement and correctional officers.
The expansive network covers around 750,000 square kilometres.
However, the current government says its infrastructure is “crumbling.”
“Ontario’s Public Safety Radio Network is one of the largest in North American and yet one of the last not to comply with the North American Standard,” said Michael Tibollo, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services.
“The daily service outages experienced with the network compromise our front-line and emergency responders’ ability to react to emergencies and put the safety of the public at risk.
Local MPP Lorne Coe says the “modernization is long overdue.”
“Our front-line and emergency responders need to have reliable, modern tools and resources in place to do their jobs and we are going to make sure this life-saving system gets underway.”
Some of the improvement plan includes rebuilding an aging infrastructure such as telecommunications towers, antennae, and shelters.
The Ministry claims the network is susceptible to “frequent service outages” and a lack of interoperability with other networks such as those in Durham Region and The City of Toronto.
The government has also pledged to provide workers and dispatchers with “state-of-the-art radio equipment,” and to provide maintenance services to restore network connections and repair equipment over a 15-year period.
Neither Tibollo nor Ford have stated how much the revitalization project will cost, and how it will be funded.
The new network is expected to be fully operational by 2023, with new service phased in by 2021.