Pensacola, FL - Escambia Purchases $12.5 Million Radio System

[Thunderbolt]

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- The Escambia County Commission voted Thursday night to purchase a $12.5 million communications systems for use by the county’s law enforcement, EMS, fire department, road department, road prison and code enforcement.

Escambia OKs $12.5M upgrade to radio system | pnj.com | Pensacola News Journal

 

[wise871]

Man this news sucks. I’m excited about P-25 but not the encryption. Escambia County is like the Wild West on Friday and Saturday nights. They ought to ask Okaloosa County how they like being on SLERS. There still broadcasting on the old and new system and having issues. I always hear them talk how the 800 is down. I at least hope the dispatch channels are not encrypted but Sheriff Morgan doesn’t look like he’s going to budge. Here’s what I don’t get. Instead of buying their own system, how come they just don’t integrate to the Florida’s SLERS system? Remember all the money that was spent building that mess and no one is using it but a few state agencies and counties. It is suppose to have all the bells and whistles a department would want. More money being wasted by the state and the county. And they wonder why Florida has the one of the highest unemployment rates in the union. My listening pleasures are starting to shrink. At this rate I guess I'll always have the Airbands.

 

[Railham_CJ]

Ah don't forget the Railroad and the Marine band's lol .

 

[gcr33]

There is a reason not to go to SLERS. It is a very poor system.

 

[bradpradio7420]

i dont use the system but am just curious what makes the S.L.E.R.S system a poor system. what kinds of issues have they had with it ?

 

[caterpillar16]

Just from an observational standpoint: I have several friends who work for Walton County Fire Rescue. They started using SLERS a couple of years ago, and it has NOT been a good system. The radios are much more expensive. They don't work well indoors in many of the places in town, including some of the fire stations! They still simulcast the dispatch traffic on VHF AND UHF, and many times the guys out in the field still rely on the VHF or UHF radios. As a result, many of the FF's are having to carry at least TWO handheld radios everywhere they go! Just doesn't seem like a great system.

 

[Railham_CJ]

A friend of mine who works in South Walton Fire called them the $5,000 paper weights.

 

[Mbk127k]

Another county going to digital and all out encryption, i think it bull****. At least make Tactical and Special Units encrypted instead and if it is such a big issue on a sensitive call then switch to a channel that could be provided that is encrypted. 97% of calls are bull**** ones anyways. It's a shame that most LE's agencies are going encrypted nowadays.

 

[wise871]

Okaloosa is have the same issue with SLERS. There still broadcasting on the old system and Fire is lugging around more than one radio. From what I've seen also. Some departments have dropped SLERS. I believe Gulf County was one of the first.

 

[bradpradio7420]

what agencies actually use the SLERS system and are satisfied with the way it works. i was reading a report
published by the florida department of management that was written in 2009 saying how it is such a great system and that it withstood several major hurricanes and other emergency situations and every county should go to it . it also said alot of agencies thought it was a great system and where happy with it. is there anybody on here that thinks this is a good system or is the report to the senate just a load of B.S to justify spending millions of tax payers dollars on a crappy radio system just so the state of florida can say they have a fully functional digital state wide radio system. i also read that some agencies tried SLERS out and were very dissatisfied with it how it worked . how many agencies tried SLERS and dumped it ?

 

[bradpradio7420]

Another county going to digital and all out encryption, i think it bull****. At least make Tactical and Special Units encrypted instead and if it is such a big issue on a sensitive call then switch to a channel that could be provided that is encrypted. 97% of calls are bull**** ones anyways. It's a shame that most LE's agencies are going encrypted nowadays.

its a shame but more and more agencies are going encrypted and i agree its B.S but there is alot of things pushing that transition. for one all of the radio sales people are pushing it , i had a guy come into my work and some how it came out that he worked for motorola sales department. i asked him what is up with all the encryption poping up every where and he told me that by 2012 the government mandates all public safety agencies to be fully encrypted . i dont really think that is the case but that is what these sales people are telling agencies looking at buying their systems. secound i have talked to a lot of sheriff deputies where i live in florida saying they are going to be encrypted because of people hearing calls on the scanner and showing up at emergency scenes and getting in the way , and no the people im talking about were not the press. they were just somebody with a scanner that wasnt content to just hear what was going on they decided they just had to see it live and get in the emergency responders way and piss them all off. the third reason encryption is becoming so popular is that unlike fire rescue that actually like people hearing what they do law enforcement dosent . i have asked many deputies questions about new talkgroups ive seen pop up on the scanner or major calls ive heard and alot of them dont like it one bit that somebody other than their agency is hearing their radio traffic i have been asked many time why do you want to know . and been told many times that that info is none of my business or the typical response "oh i cant tell you that " i think encryption is depriving the citizens of what ever jurisdictions that are using it the right to know what is going on in their community and should not be used on any talkgroups other than SWAT, NARCOTICS or other special ops groups. all dispatches and car to car should be considered public info and be transmited in the clear,anyone in the community should have the right to monitor the public safety agencies that serve them,and any agency that has an objection to public monitoring must have something to hide or they wouldnt worry about people hearing them but unless everyone who enjoys scanning speaks up to the people who matter in these issues your going to see more and more encryption coming on line

 

[MTS2000des]

"A Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandate requires counties to update outdated analog systems, like the one used by Escambia County's emergency agencies, to meet certain digital standards by Jan. 1, 2013."

Oh Christ, here we go with this misinformation and disinformation again.
Another turd reporter repeats this same line of dribble and it's on...I give up.

 

[alexfoster30]

I agree that as a scanner enthusiast, encryption sucks. As a police officer who deals with criminals out there in "scannerland," encryption is a great thing. If you work for a smaller police department, like I do, you only have one talkgroup, and guess what....all the drug dealers know what the talkgroup ID is. I can't tell you how many times we have seen our evidence disappear from people hearing we are coming.

Like I said, it sucks if you are a scanner enthusiast, just like I am, but when its your rear end on the line, it's a nice feeling knowing the criminals can't hear you. I would love for my agency to be encrypted, but we aren't.

 

[bravo14]

I agree that as a scanner enthusiast, encryption sucks. As a police officer who deals with criminals out there in "scannerland," encryption is a great thing. If you work for a smaller police department, like I do, you only have one talkgroup, and guess what....all the drug dealers know what the talkgroup ID is. I can't tell you how many times we have seen our evidence disappear from people hearing we are coming.

Like I said, it sucks if you are a scanner enthusiast, just like I am, but when its your rear end on the line, it's a nice feeling knowing the criminals can't hear you. I would love for my agency to be encrypted, but we aren't.

I know the feeling. Some areas are ENC on everything even some Public Works. I can see maybe like VICE SWAT CERT and other channels like that could be Encrypted.