MA State Police TRS Zone 3

[Junior08]

Did a database administrator change the GPS settings for Zone 3 recently? I did an update for my Home Patrol-1 which I use mobile with GPS and I'm getting scratchy reception in various parts of South Sandwich that can only be caused by Zone 3. Looking at the coverage "circle" in the database it looks like coverage is extended to almost Barnstable, which is really not needed. This zone honestly should not be covering anything past Plymouth. Can this be changed to a better coverage circle? Thanks.

 

[ecps92]

Radioreference database GPS info

Did a database administrator change the GPS settings for Zone 3 recently? I did an update for my Home Patrol-1 which I use mobile with GPS and I'm getting scratchy reception in various parts of South Sandwich that can only be caused by Zone 3. Looking at the coverage "circle" in the database it looks like coverage is extended to almost Barnstable, which is really not needed. This zone honestly should not be covering anything past Plymouth. Can this be changed to a better coverage circle? Thanks.

 

[mrsvensven]

Site 3 needs to cover from Westport to Attleboro to Hull. The only way to cover that area involves the circle extending out onto the cape. Your best bet is to just lock out site 3. Unfortunately when you are limited to a circular shape you can't get the boundaries exactly right. If you exclude Hull (which is probably covered by site 5 anyway), you can make the circle a couple miles smaller but it doesn't change a whole lot.

I did submit new coordinates for most of the MSP trunk sites. I don't remember exactly what site 3 was set to before, but I think the circle was too small and didn't cover westport.

 

[Junior08]

While I agree with and understand the circle method for GPS I find it strange that Westport went uncovered by Zone 3 before but was never reported by someone, or that it was the only town in that area that was affected by coverage but surrounding towns were fine, Fairhaven and Fall River? Like I said I understand the circle coverage but there should be no reason Zone 3 extends into the town of Barnstable to accommodate Westport. There has to be a better solution.

I also would think Hull may be covered via Zone 5 but can't say for sure.

 

[garys]

There is significant overlap between sites in the MSP system. There is also significant adjacent Troop coverage.

As I recall there is a site in the Attleboro area that has both Zone 3 and Zone 5 coverage. Zone 3 mostly serves the southeast corner of MA, but overlaps as far down as Woods Hole. If you don't want to hear that traffic and are mostly on the Cape, then locking out Zone 3 is your best bet. You will probably still hear MSP Middleboro and MSP Dartmouth, but it will be more clear.

D Troop picks up at the Weymouth/Hingham line, so Zone 3 covers up that far. H 7 stops at the Stoughton/Brockton line, so Zone 3 has to go up that far. H 3 covers I 95 all the way down to the RI line. I don't know where the demarcation line is on 495, but it's somewhere between 24 and 95. That's a fair amount of land to cover, which is why there is so much overlap.

 

[Junior08]

Ok but if I'm using GPS when mobile with a HP-1 how do I lock out Zone 3? What if I'm traveling from Sandwich to Plymouth or Marshfield or just going up Rt.3, I know I'm making a bit much of this but was this really screwed up before?

 

[mrsvensven]

Ok but if I'm using GPS when mobile with a HP-1 how do I lock out Zone 3? What if I'm traveling from Sandwich to Plymouth or Marshfield or just going up Rt.3, I know I'm making a bit much of this but was this really screwed up before?

It was screwed up before, especially out in western MA where there are a lot of trunked sites in a small area, most with the range in the db set to 30 miles. You could be in one spot and have 3 or more sites being scanned even though you are only actually able to receive one or two of them.

 

[Junior08]

Still not addressing my questions about this Zone.