MARCS-IP ("New MARCS") Site and Talkgroup Discussion

[WeldGuy]

If they're going with all the options (having Motorola the Motorola System Technologist install the RA feature, generate the RA key and dump it into the radio, push the RA key to the system and do a full alignment of the radio), that's about right.



MARCS made that feature mandatory a couple of years back; anything sold to Ohio MARCS users/customers from any manufacturer since around the beginning of 2020 should have the feature.

Is this going to affect our scanners, or is it only for radios that transmit?

 

[kf8yk]

Is this going to affect our scanners, or is it only for radios that transmit?

Completely transparent to scanner users. There's radios on the system today using authentication, no reported issues with scanners.

 

[IStebleton]

Does OHP use car #'s or badge #'s when keying up?

 

[amcferrin90]

Does OHP use car #'s or badge #'s when keying up?

I'm not sure if it's their badge number. Their unit number doesn't change no matter what vehicle they're driving. That may be their badge number. A friend of mine is a trooper and he ID's always the same no matter what vehicle he's in or post he's at.

 

[IStebleton]

I'm getting several ENC hits on TG:51785, with some of them being from N18HP, who is circling over the Turnpike near Norwalk. I wonder if OSHP has a specific TG for Air-Ground comms when doing speed traps? Or could this be a certain Post Tactical/Private channel?

 

[IStebleton]

I'm getting several ENC hits on TG:51785, with some of them being from N18HP, who is circling over the Turnpike near Norwalk. I wonder if OSHP has a specific TG for Air-Ground comms when doing speed traps? Or could this be a certain Post Tactical/Private channel?

It seems as though this may be a Turnpike channel (OSHP District 10) as OHP Cleveland (who dispatches for the Turnpike) keyed up and warned units of an incident in case things went south to be aware. There are at least 2 Turnpike OSHP units on the ground talking with the plane.

 

[Nasby]

I'm not sure if it's their badge number. Their unit number doesn't change no matter what vehicle they're driving. That may be their badge number. A friend of mine is a trooper and he ID's always the same no matter what vehicle he's in or post he's at.

They are assigned a unit number upon graduating the OSP academy. Their instructor picks their number.

 

[a388sig2]

I'm getting several ENC hits on TG:51785, with some of them being from N18HP, who is circling over the Turnpike near Norwalk. I wonder if OSHP has a specific TG for Air-Ground comms when doing speed traps? Or could this be a certain Post Tactical/Private channel?

Looks like you found TPWTAC1

They are assigned a unit number upon graduating the OSP academy. Their instructor picks their number.

Badge numbers, while they do have numbers imprinted on them, are almost useless to the State Highway Patrol, everything is done by unit number, policy says you could also use car number over the radio, but the 80% of their dispatchers don't know that and would just be confused.

A late 90's instructor would give females 1010, 1111, 1212, dunno if they thought it was funny or what. They probably couldn't do that today.

Someone more recently thought it would be fun to put unit numbers on the back of patrol car license plates. So there's a good chance when you roll up on a patrol car you know who you're dealing with, or who you want to commend or complaint.

 

[gtaman]

Drove past the Bixby road site. Looks like they removed the antennas and signage. Also not seeing the site on my radio.

Anyone else able to confirm this a removed site.

 

[wa8pyr]

Drove past the Bixby road site. Looks like they removed the antennas and signage. Also not seeing the site on my radio.

Anyone else able to confirm this a removed site.

According to the database, it's been moved to Reynoldsburg.

 

[amcferrin90]

It's not showing as a neighbor in my radio and hasn't for a few months. I think the last I looked there were microwave links still up and those may remain there. One link was definitely from the Groves Rd tower, the other aimed maybe to Parsons? I was just looking at licenses and 8955 East Main was one of the newer ones. I do recall hearing the Bixby site was moving to Reynoldsburg. I don't know if it will be in the simulcast mix or a separate site.

Also FWIW driving around Fairfield county today, I always wondered where the "Troy" site was, it's Millersport and doesn't do to bad for portable coverage (outdoors).

Driving to near the Intel site today I saw a new lattice tower behind the West Licking fire station in Jersey. It looks a lot like the Millersport tower. Wondering if it's going to be a new MARCS site? Or maybe moving Pataskala site to it? Could be somebody elses.

 

[wa8pyr]

It's not showing as a neighbor in my radio and hasn't for a few months. I think the last I looked there were microwave links still up and those may remain there. One link was definitely from the Groves Rd tower, the other aimed maybe to Parsons? I was just looking at licenses and 8955 East Main was one of the newer ones. I do recall hearing the Bixby site was moving to Reynoldsburg. I don't know if it will be in the simulcast mix or a separate site.

Reynoldsburg is a stand-alone, as it was before the move, apparently will remain so.

Driving to near the Intel site today I saw a new lattice tower behind the West Licking fire station in Jersey. It looks a lot like the Millersport tower. Wondering if it's going to be a new MARCS site? Or maybe moving Pataskala site to it? Could be somebody elses.

According to the minutes of the last SIEC meeting, Licking County is about to go simulcast. Maybe that’s a new tower for it?

 

[firemantom26]

Licking County has not switched to simulcast. I keep checking and the sites are still stand-alone.

 

[wd8chl]

Looks like you found TPWTAC1



Badge numbers, while they do have numbers imprinted on them, are almost useless to the State Highway Patrol, everything is done by unit number, policy says you could also use car number over the radio, but the 80% of their dispatchers don't know that and would just be confused.

A late 90's instructor would give females 1010, 1111, 1212, dunno if they thought it was funny or what. They probably couldn't do that today.

Someone more recently thought it would be fun to put unit numbers on the back of patrol car license plates. So there's a good chance when you roll up on a patrol car you know who you're dealing with, or who you want to commend or complaint.

The unit ID's that you see on your scanner on MARCS are assigned by MARCS, and the only significance normally is the first two digits are the county, and the second two are the agency within the county. But for OTP, that mostly goes out the window. But in any case, the ID you see stays with the radio, not the person.

 

[wa8pyr]

Licking County has not switched to simulcast. I keep checking and the sites are still stand-alone.

For now.....

 

[wa8pyr]

(snip)the first two digits are the county, and the second two are the agency within the county.

That's not completely true. While the first two digits do represent the county number, the remaining digits can be nearly anything.

In many if not most cases, MARCS customers radio IDs are CO9xxxx, where CO is the county number. The rest after the 9 are randomly assigned by MARCS on a next-available basis; you could see an agency with a dozen consecutive IDs assigned when the radios were purchased, then following those would be five radios from another agency, then seven from still another agency, and so on.

Other counties do come up with their own scheme for the five digits after the county number; most of the "tier" partner agencies (such as Franklin County, etc) do this.

Ohio MARCS IP: Multi-Agency Radio Communications Radio ID Logic - The RadioReference Wiki

wiki.radioreference.com

 

[sopranosno1]

Caught today new user on the old Tipp city streets talk group 34123. Edison state college security. Units 1401 1402. I will listen little more before I submit.

 

[IStebleton]

I came across some ambulance/MICU dispatch channel today off of the Norwalk site.
TG30983 with UID's 4890117 and 4890123. One callsign sounded like "Ambul 3" Any clue who this might be?

 

[sopranosno1]

Caught off the miami county tower, 52650 radio id's were 9255530 9255525 9257549

 

[wd8chl]

Fwiw-XLECOM6 is being used for the football hall of fame event this week. That TG has been turned off for anyone else in the state not involved in that event.