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State Police and County Police CB usage

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Trainguy1997

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Do state police still use CB? I know county does as I noticed the less populated counties east of me, notably Laporte County and some Porter County officers have CB antennas. They would also monitor channel 9 right?
 

jonwienke

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Not likely. The antennas you are seeing are probably vhf low band, not cb.
 

KK4JUG

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I suspect some of the smaller ones still do. I've noticed that some of the lesser-populated (and possibly poorer) counties have CB users (KS, OK, AL, AR). This was a couple of years ago. I'll bet they all still have a CB radio sitting around somewhere. Whether or not it's turned on or they even have an antenna is another question.
 

SCPD

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New Mexico SP has them in some MTD units. I know for fact the port weigh stations will have one but whether it is on or not is another thing. Others if they purchased themself and had it installed. Not as much as it use to be however.

Some smaller NM counties have a deputy here or there who monitor CB in the rural stretch of highways.

Many will setup speed traps, run radar and listen to see if they are spotted to listening in general and of course ch 9.

It isn't as wide spread though as it use to be. It is hit or miss if it'll be on however in the units. Depending on how much radio traffic they have and if they are working a assignment. If it's dead middle of am and a SP is on or deputy he may have it on. Most NM LE state, to county entities have at minimum 2 mobiles installed on so monitoring locals, county, state, neighboring county traffic will determine if he or she wants to listen to CB. Most the time they are busy and wouldn't have time.

Some rural dispatch offices would have a CB on 9 in the remote village towns in NM that were near major highways or interstates. The larger town to city entities removed them way back from dispatch offices.

I know for fact some LE and fire around NM frequent this site and are also scanner enthusiasts.
 

FiveFilter

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I radioed a Channel 19 "smokey" report a couple of months ago and got a "that's right" in return.

I didn't ask if the affirmation was from the cop or another driver, but my guess at the time it was from the cop.
 

renaldow

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I was a police dispatcher in Oregon, quit a handful of years ago. Still in contact with friends who are dispatchers there. Have been to and graduated from Oregon Dept. of Safety, Standards and Training (Oregon's police academy).

That said, our 911 center didn't monitor any CB frequencies, and I know that none of the police agencies in our county, including the county, monitored them. At DPSST I was told that some state officers may have a CB in their car, if they request it, but that nobody in the state officially monitored any CB traffic.

Truth be told, since about the early 90's, most police cars carry so many electronics in them that equipment like a CB isn't going to be installed unless it's absolutely necessary. Between computers, their radio, lights and controls, cell phone charger, etc. there isn't a lot of spare power to run something like a CB and there really isn't much room for one anywhere where it would be handy.
 

freqs

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In Michigan the only ones I know of is MSP Motor Carrier Enforcement .MSP only have a few Units at each Post
 

KB7MIB

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I know some Arizona DPS troopers have had them in the past, particularly those who patrol more rural stretches of highway, but I don't know if any of them, or if any of the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau troopers, still do.
I also don't know if any of the AzDOT Enforcement and Compliance Division officers who man the ports of entry and sometimes run mobile compliance checks ever did or still do so.

I do believe that at least some of the AzDOT ALERT members and Maricopa County DOT REACT members do. (ALERT and REACT are specially trained DOT members who work with DPS, and the SO and some local PD's respectively, to provide traffic control and roadway shutdowns as needed due to incidents. I have heard both teams working together to take traffic off the freeway and direct them over rural surface streets back onto the freeway a few miles away, and I heard mention of the use of CB's to direct the truckers.)

In my opinion, it would make sense for at least the more rural troopers and deputies to do so, as well as those who are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement, however, as mentioned above, it may not be possible what with all of the other radios that they may have.

John
Peoria, AZ
 
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Ravenkeeper

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CHP has them on some units, usually monitoring 9 and to talk to trucks sometimes.

There's usually one or two at the scales. Some of them sit quietly and listen for drivers to mention something about some moron heading their way.

New Mexico SP has them in some MTD units. I know for fact the port weigh stations will have one but whether it is on or not is another thing. Others if they purchased themself and had it installed. Not as much as it use to be however.

Some smaller NM counties have a deputy here or there who monitor CB in the rural stretch of highways.

Many will setup speed traps, run radar and listen to see if they are spotted to listening in general and of course ch 9.

It isn't as wide spread though as it use to be. It is hit or miss if it'll be on however in the units. Depending on how much radio traffic they have and if they are working a assignment. If it's dead middle of am and a SP is on or deputy he may have it on. Most NM LE state, to county entities have at minimum 2 mobiles installed on so monitoring locals, county, state, neighboring county traffic will determine if he or she wants to listen to CB. Most the time they are busy and wouldn't have time.

Some rural dispatch offices would have a CB on 9 in the remote village towns in NM that were near major highways or interstates. The larger town to city entities removed them way back from dispatch offices.

I know for fact some LE and fire around NM frequent this site and are also scanner enthusiasts.

Lived in NM for 5.5 years, ran CB the whole time, I was running a "Purple-Grey" 93 Grand Am with twin K40s, dark windows (sides and back), and my antennas were 'dragging," quite often. My Grand Am looked more Purple than anything else, but occasionally, the sun would hit it just right and it would "turn black." Every once in a while, you would see NMSP respond to something that was called over ch19. Usually it was a couple drivers calling out a speeder "breaking the sound barrier," or a drunk driver. Don't know if they were really monitoring ch9.

About two months ago, my black (with a little bit of chrome trim) was mistaken for a CHP on the move. I was about to be late for work and really got my foot into it on CA58. I requested confirmation and location, and they called out the road that I came off of and "he" was running east (like me). I had to laugh. CHP does NOT have any trucks without camper shell, let a lone no white front doors and chrome trim.

I radioed a Channel 19 "smokey" report a couple of months ago and got a "that's right" in return.

I didn't ask if the affirmation was from the cop or another driver, but my guess at the time it was from the cop.

HA! I would have echoed back with "Well, have a nice day/night."
 

millrad

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Connecticut state and local police stopped monitoring CB over 20 years ago - around the time cellphones became popular. I do remember the 1980s, when there were road signs indicating that police monitored Channel 9.
 

SpugEddy

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Having worked there myself, I know for fact
that Camden County Dispatch in NJ does not
monitor any CB channels. This covers every
Boro in the county with the exception of just
a few. Not sure about State Police NJ
 

Mustang131

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I can remember the Allenwood, NJ State Police listening back in the the mid 90's...about when they built the station. I lived only 2 miles away and remember calling them on drunk drivers and such in the 90's.
Sadly I know they shut it down before Y2K..however I keep my radio on 19 and 9 till 2004.
 

mmckenna

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I haven't seen it used by any agency in Northern California in a decade or more.

CHP often has it in their commercial enforcement vehicles (trucks), but that's it. I haven't seen a CHP vehicle with a CB whip other than that in a long time. Used to see them on the "mountain" highway vehicles up in the Sierras, but not sure if that's still done.

When they close the major highways or require chain-ups, there used to be a few of the California Dept. Of transportation supervisor trucks that had CB's, but not sure if they monitored.

I was in a dispatch center about 10 years ago that still had a CB on the console. It was shut off and was removed shortly thereafter. Dispatchers have too much work to do without having to listen to a CB.

I'm sure it still used in some places, just not anywhere I've traveled in the western US. CB has been pretty quiet out there the last 10 - 15 years. Law Enforcement has so much more on their plates now. I certainly wouldn't rely on being able to reach police, fire or EMS in an emergency by CB, that's for sure.
 

KC3ECJ

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Atleast as of a couple years ago there were signs on the Ohio Turnpike that channel 9 was monitored. Might still be.

In Pennsylvania I have noticed that state police occasionally have a magnet mount which looks like it could be for CB.
 

PrivatelyJeff

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I know CHP has them on the last of the crown vics down in kern county. I see them every once in awhile. I think I’ve seen them on the explorers too, mainly on the ones used for actual highway patrol, not the ones on rural patrol.
 

mmckenna

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I know CHP has them on the last of the crown vics down in kern county. I see them every once in awhile. I think I’ve seen them on the explorers too, mainly on the ones used for actual highway patrol, not the ones on rural patrol.

You sure that's not the low band antenna? I've been all over the state and only place I've seen them was on the commercial enforcement trucks. Used to be they had them on the old Expeditions they'd use in the Sierras, but I haven't see one of those in a few years.

If they are, it'd be interesting to know what they are using them for. With the use of CB tapering off so much and the need to add other radios for interoperability, squeezing another antenna on those guys must have been a challenge.
 

PrivatelyJeff

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Yeah. The VHF-low is on top center. These are long steel whips on a ball mount located on the passenger side rear fender. I drive a big rig from kings county to the grapevine and back twice a day, everyday for a few months every year, mainly along highway 99. I don’t see them every unit, only on the old crown vics that are still in service and an explorer RARELY (enough to be odd when I see it). I don’t see them anywhere else in the state. It makes sense with all the big rigs going through the area with the grapevine and highway 58 headed out through the desert so close. I imagine it’s to monitor truck CB traffic since we can see so much from our positions.
 
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