California Radio Interoperable System (CRIS)

[KK6ZTE]

What's going to happen when some crap gets put in the cars that interferes with VHF/700? 800? UHF?

That's very common on VHF High already, UHF to a much lesser degree but not a minuscule level.

 

[gmclam]

... I don't see any of this coming to reality statewide for several years. There are still MANY, MANY agencies that need to be migrated to CRIS, and if you think the state is in a rush to throw its largest law enforcement agency on that system, well, wrong....

Generally speaking, I could see this more or less become CHP's system. So what if others take years to migrate. Next it depends on how well the CHP trial goes on Sacramento Gold.

I was listening to a chat on CLERS, a VHF frequency typically used between dispatchers of different agencies (often in different counties) and it made me think of this system. Here's a great little channel, not so widely used, but where it is used I feel is ideal for what it is intended for. Seem like a candidate for CRIS. Yeah right now the agency has to have a transceiver setup connected to their dispatch console and there is a range limit. But it's simple. "Everyone" would have access to it on CRIS, for good or bad.

 

[mmckenna]

Yeah, CRIS isn't built out all the way and will never have 100% coverage.
Putting many state agencies on CRIS makes some sense for sharing resources and spreading the cost around.

I asked CalOES in a meeting about CHP, and their goal is to get them onto CRIS, but they acknowledged that low band probably is not going away in the next 10-20 years. Just too many places it is the only thing that will work.

 

[ScannerDude244]

I believe CDCR is on TG 200. I heard a tech calling a CDC unit on the wrong TG then switch over to TG 200. I was surprised Felton Fire has the big E on their TG.

​

 

[AM909]

I believe CDCR is on TG 200. I heard a tech calling a CDC unit on the wrong TG then switch over to TG 200. I was surprised Felton Fire has the big E on their TG.

​

CDCR has their own P25 trunking systems at many prison sites. I imagine they have some kind of interop capability with CRIS when needed, but pretty rare need for comms outside their own site.

 

[d119]

CDCR has their own P25 trunking systems at many prison sites. I imagine they have some kind of interop capability with CRIS when needed, but pretty rare need for comms outside their own site.

(almost) every CDCR vehicle I've seen on the interstate has a lowband antenna on it, so they've got SOMETHING when they are out of range of the system. Not sure what it is, but I'd imagine they have direct access to the CHP in the event of an incident.

I use GE RANGRs in both of my vehicles to religiously listen to CHP and I'm not getting excited about an "imminent switch" to CRIS. If CalOES is predicting 10-20 years, well, that's about on-par with the way things have gone in the past. It's also nice that they are acknowledging coverage deficiencies will be an inevitability and that VHF-Low isn't going away completely.

I've a feeling that when the state starts to realize the cost of ownership of this thing (read: non state-owned sites required for coverage), that it's going to become a budget issue.

The concept of CRIS is unquestionably a day late and a dollar short for the State of California, and when they DO get this thing ready for "prime time", "prime time" will have long come and gone.

Remember the EFJ handhelds for CHP? HAH!

 

[LAflyer]

Down in SoCal CDCR used to pop up on CMARS when they did transport between facilities. Have not heard them recently though.

 

[norcalscan]

Down in SoCal CDCR used to pop up on CMARS when they did transport between facilities. Have not heard them recently though.

I'd also hear CDCR on CMARS in norcal. And CMARS users are prime targets for CRIS; general statewide "itinerant/occasional" use.

Expanding on d119's post, don't underestimate the political/funding maneuvering CRIS (and PSCO) might be doing as well. Departments in large governments and corporations tend to lean heavily on sunken cost fallacies. Spend/build just enough under one pretense, to get a significant user-swell and suddenly the political clout is there to expand and further fund things, even if it's not "ideal" or costs 10x what the legacy systems did. "Well, we're already here, might as well keep on..." PSCO in their previous life as DGS Telecom were notorious for manufacturing their own value.

I see a lot of duplicative efforts in every agency having their own telecom, but there's value in agency autonomy as well. There's also some good value in centralizing some pieces and efforts of a state-wide cause like this, and PSCO seems to have sobered up on their power and become more...collaborative...since coming under the supportive mission of CalOES. The state has always had a very solid microwave backbone but each agency sort of did their own last-mile off of that. We'll start to see if the larger agencies find value in this new last-mile solution.

 

[mmckenna]

I found my notes from the CalOES meeting a few weeks back.

I have something in there about 55 sites. Not sure where that is on the timeline.

The idea behind the CRIS system was:
-Provide radio service for small agencies that didn't have their own radio systems.
-Provide an interoperability resource between state agencies. The plan is for all state agencies to be on CRIS at some level and have the state interop talkgroups in the radios. All other agencies (non-state) are optional with a fee for service.

CMARS and some of those other systems were a good idea at the time, but are often under utilized and are out of date. Single VHF channel no longer meets the needs/requirements for law enforcement agencies.

The CRIS system solves the encryption issue for the small state agencies easily.

 

[officer_415]

Expanding on d119's post, don't underestimate the political/funding maneuvering CRIS (and PSCO) might be doing as well.

PSCO in their previous life as DGS Telecom were notorious for manufacturing their own value.

PSCO seems to have sobered up on their power and become more...collaborative...since coming under the supportive mission of CalOES.

I think they just go by "PSC" now...

 

[mmckenna]

Looking at the latest NAPCO frequency coordination log:

New applications for CRIS sites at:
Nubieber, CA (Lassen County) 4 VHF pairs Probably at Big Valley: 41.159580, -121.297206
Likely, CA (Modoc County) 4 VHF pairs Likely Mountain: 41.155038, -120.563638
Susanville/Shaffer Mtn. (Lassen County) 4 VHF pairs 40.446603, -120.357934

http://www.napco.org/freqlogs/230316fl.pdf

 

[INDY72]

Sad that CHP is going full time E on CRIS. They even put a vid on YT about it. Starting in Sacramento then going statewide.

 

[Randyk4661]

Do you have a link for this video?

 

[officer_415]

Do you have a link for this video?

Look earlier in the thread.

California Radio Interoperable System (CRIS)

Mono County is NOT using CRIS as their primary radio system. I've had all the CRIS frequencies on the Sweetwater, Conway, Crestview, Sherwin Summit and Silver Peak Electronic Sites in my scanner since the 29th of December and hooked up to a logging system. All I've heard is a Morse Code ID on...

forums.radioreference.com

 

[CopperWhopper67]

Logged 4 TGs on Pine Hill today:
1939 (FTB Security)
1662: Encrypted
21: Clear, but one keyup only, no voice
438: Clear, two females discussing guys moving stuff around regarding an electrical issue

 

[vince48]

interesting,
Blue ridge was very busy today also. much encrypted messages from TG 160 RID 448. Earlier this morning they TG 160 in the clear. Sounds like they were on some mountain top mentioned "base camp" to refuel generators and radio equipment checks.

other RID for TG 160 - 447, 100, 441, 570

Other TG this morning - 138 RID 472

 

[scannerboy02]

From Broadcastify Calls recordings, TG:1974 was verbally identified as "Cal Vet Emergency". Sounds like they are doing radio checks just about every morning between the "Cal Vet HQ" and the "Lancaster VA Home" security and the "Reading VA Home" security.

Edit: This again underlines the value of setting up Calls nodes for this system. We can go back and listen to the audio and get a very good, if not confirmed, idea of talk group use.

 

[vince48]

Still much going on from Blue Ridge site. Looks like they had to bring up a new generator. But this is the first time I have seen this neighbor show up:

Site - BEE00.9D2-165; CC=6-1345 154.3650

 

[Project4]

I have it on VERY good authority that the RFI CHP is experiencing is very real.

Real enough to the point that Ford told the CHP "If our vehicles don't work for you, go buy someone elses."

Historically, many agencies across the nation have followed the lead of the CHP when purchasing their fleets due to the extensive platform testing done in Sacramento. Multiple Ford dealerships bid against each other for the lucrative General Services contract. I doubt any real voice of Ford would suggest the CHP buy elsewhere.

Is the RFI issue suffered by the Kenwood TK-690H radio or some other system element like the vehicular repeater or the data modem/display?

Okay, back to CRIS now.

 

[officer_415]

Still much going on from Blue Ridge site. Looks like they had to bring up a new generator. But this is the first time I have seen this neighbor show up:

Site - BEE00.9D2-165; CC=6-1345 154.3650

It should be 154.3625, Silver Peak