monitoring the USPS?

[KD7HGK]

I wasn't sure whether to put this thread here or in the TN state forum. I would like to monitor the United States Postal Service. I know federal government agencies are dealt with through the NTIA and not the FCC. I guess the way the NTIA works is they don't issue licenses, so there's no handy lookup tool on their website. I'm in the process of programming in the Wide Area and Local Area common federal frequencies. My question is, would those frequencies allow me to listen to the USPS? I would also like to listen to the operations at the large post office off Weisgarber Road here in Knoxville, if that's possible. I believe it's a distribution center. It has trucks pulled up to loading docks in the back of the facility all the time.

 

[ChrisP]

I know federal government agencies are dealt with through the NTIA and not the FCC. I guess the way the NTIA works is they don't issue licenses, so there's no handy lookup tool on their website. I'm in the process of programming in the Wide Area and Local Area common federal frequencies. My question is, would those frequencies allow me to listen to the USPS? I would also like to listen to the operations at the large post office off Weisgarber Road here in Knoxville, if that's possible. I believe it's a distribution center. It has trucks pulled up to loading docks in the back of the facility all the time.

The NTIA does actually issue a license of sort with a callsign and everything, but it is part of the Government Master File, and not available for public access,

The US Postal Service has quite a few allocations in the federal bands, with a majority of their allocations in the 406-420 MHz UHF band. I'm not sure how much they would have use for the federal interoperability and federal common channels. I would definitely search through these and see what you come up with.

406.1125
406.2250
406.2500
406.3500
406.3250
406.3375
406.3750
406.3875
406.4750
406.6625
406.8125
406.9750
407.1375
407.1500
407.1750
407.2750
407.5500
407.6500
407.7250
407.7750
408.0000
408.0250
408.0500
408.1000
408.1250
408.1500
408.1750
408.4250
408.4750
408.5250
408.5750
408.6250
408.8250
409.0250
409.1000
409.1750
409.2000
409.2750
409.3000
409.3500
409.3750
409.4500
409.5250
409.5500
409.6375
409.6500
409.7750
409.8250
409.9000
409.9375
410.0000
410.0250
410.2000
410.3250
410.3500
411.2750
411.3500
411.4000
411.4500
411.5000
411.5500
411.5750
411.6250
411.6500
411.7750
412.0000
412.0250
412.2750
412.3500
412.4750
412.7500
413.5750
413.6000
413.6250
413.7000
413.8000
413.8250
414.1500
414.3250
414.4000
414.4250
414.4500
414.6250
414.6500
414.7250
414.7500
414.9750
415.0500
415.1500
415.3250
415.3375
415.3500
415.3750
415.3875
415.4500
415.4750
416.7250
416.7750
417.7000
418.3000

- Chris

 

[ChrisP]

And check with these for some VHF allocations for Postal Service activity.

162.1500
162.2250
163.0000
163.1750
163.3750
164.1000
164.1750
164.2000
164.5000
164.6000
164.7000
164.9125
164.9625
164.9875
165.5250
166.2000
166.2250
166.3500
166.3750
166.6125
167.1250
168.0000
168.5000
168.5250
169.0000
169.1125
169.3750
169.5750
169.6000
169.6500
169.8000
169.8500
170.1250
170.1750
170.6000
171.1750
171.2625
171.9750
172.3000
173.6125
173.6375
173.6875
173.7375
173.7875

Other than the US Postal Inspection Service, there seems to be very little standard usage of these VHF & UHF channels. Repeater, simplex, CTCSS, DCS, they use it all. The Postal Inspectors are all P-25 and encrypted.

- Chris

 

[KB7MIB]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux i686; U; en-US) Gecko/20081217 Vision-Browser/8.1 301x200 LG VN530)

Hopefully, they're using clear voice. Some USPS comms in the Phoenix area are using MotoTrbo, which requires the use of DSD to monitor. And the Postal Inspection Service is probably encrypted as much federal law enforcement is. Good luck!

 

[ecps92]

Thanks CP, was about to post some of your Blog Links

Some notes/comments on listening to USPS Facilities

Not all Postal Facilities use Radios.

Some are on Very Low Power and you might need to be in a parking lot next to the Building to even Find them.

As pointed out, some are using TRBO

Spend sometime searching the 162-174 [don't skip the 162 area below the NWS] and the 400-420 band. Maybe even using Close-Call/signal Stalker

Activity will vary, by daytime/nightime, Mon-Fri?, Weekends? Is it an Airport Facility etc


The facility in Question, what is it ?
a Post Office?, GMF [yes throwing out some Acronyms], Sorting Facility?
United States Postal Service - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Note a rude comment, but if after a year of really spending time searching, maybe they don't even use radios. Some have been found using Non Federal, Yup...Business band radios too.

And above all else, when you find them, share

I wasn't sure whether to put this thread here or in the TN state forum. I would like to monitor the United States Postal Service. I know federal government agencies are dealt with through the NTIA and not the FCC. I guess the way the NTIA works is they don't issue licenses, so there's no handy lookup tool on their website. I'm in the process of programming in the Wide Area and Local Area common federal frequencies. My question is, would those frequencies allow me to listen to the USPS? I would also like to listen to the operations at the large post office off Weisgarber Road here in Knoxville, if that's possible. I believe it's a distribution center. It has trucks pulled up to loading docks in the back of the facility all the time.

 

[ChrisP]

Note a rude comment, but if after a year of really spending time searching, maybe they don't even use radios. Some have been found using Non Federal, Yup...Business band radios too.

I was going to mention that, too.

The main US Post Office sorting facility near me was very active on several federal VHF channels for years, then one day, gone - completely disappeared. We've been searching, parked outside with Close Call & Signal Stalkers going, but nothing.

Still no idea if they even have radios or just using cell phones.

- Chris

 

[62Truck]

One of the USPS locations in a neighboring county uses UHF and they have a total of 4 channels they use and its all simplex, and they are currently uses Motorola HT1250's. Now down in NYC I know they use VHF.

 

[KB1UAM]

I know in my area, they use a couple of those vhf frequencies. The United States postal inspectors also have access to the local police interoperable channel on the BAPERN System. They always answer the roll call to. I think that is pretty interesting when I hear them answer.

 

[puzzleriddle]

CP any known NACS or tones on any of em?

 

[62Truck]

I know in my area, they use a couple of those vhf frequencies. The United States postal inspectors also have access to the local police interoperable channel on the BAPERN System. They always answer the roll call to. I think that is pretty interesting when I hear them answer.

We have one here in Poughkeepsie, been in his office before (was a trip back in highschool)

Never hear him on any of the local PD systems

 

[ChrisP]

CP any known NACS or tones on any of em?

The US Postal Inspectors use a standard P-25 NAC of N482. The other Postal Service operations, such as sorting or truck operations, can use anything, simplex, repeater, CTCSS, DCS, TRBO. No standard tones aside from the inspectors...

And as was pointed out earlier, they don't always end up on federal allocations - whatever the local post office management decides to buy for radios.

- Chris

 

[ecps92]

Boston is unique as many of the Federal Agencies have access to the Police Mutual Aid [BAPERN] vs being funded for creating a new DoJ Interop. They already had funded for the DNC years ago for a VHF-VHF-UHF Interop for Boston PD [they can then patch to T-Band and 800 if needed from there]

We have one here in Poughkeepsie, been in his office before (was a trip back in highschool)

Never hear him on any of the local PD systems

 

[ecps92]

Which ones ? Been searching for Southeastern Mass OPs and all have been observed in UHF

I know in my area, they use a couple of those vhf frequencies. The United States postal inspectors also have access to the local police interoperable channel on the BAPERN System. They always answer the roll call to. I think that is pretty interesting when I hear them answer.

 

[KD7HGK]

Finally heard something today

I finally heard something today. Low audio on 409.775MHz. sounded like "NP 62 this is "unintelligible"". Followed by short bursts of BRRT! BRRT! sounds. not sure what I have here.

 

[KB1UAM]

Which ones ? Been searching for Southeastern Mass OPs and all have been observed in UHF

Sorry that was a typo, I was talking about the bapern system, meant to say uhf.

 

[ecps92]

I think 409.7750 near you is the Oak Ridge National Labs TRS

I finally heard something today. Low audio on 409.775MHz. sounded like "NP 62 this is "unintelligible"". Followed by short bursts of BRRT! BRRT! sounds. not sure what I have here.

 

[Alarms50]

This may not help where you are, but the White Plains, NY USPS Distribution Facility uses 414.725MHz Federal Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference.

 

[GM]

Most Mail Processing Plants have three shifts (or tours, as they call them):

7 am - 3 pm Tour 2
3 pm - 11 pm Tour 3
11 pm - 7 am Tour 1

Each tour has a specific function that requires the use of radios, and how the channels will be used. Tour 2 is not that busy, with some of the supervisors talking on radios, and Vehicle Maintenance Facilities using them for communication, as well as transporting equipment around. Tour 3 is going to be the busiest, with collected mail going to the plants to be sorted and processed, and then distributed/loaded onto the trucks for further sorting to the assigned plants/locations to be determined (airports, other sorting plants, etc.). Tour 1 has operations such as final preparation of mail being sorted by the machines (letters going through a DPS machine [delivery point sequence which puts it in walking order for the carrier without manual sorting]) and is the second busiest time for radio usage.

Hopefully, this will help with trying to figure out what freq's are being used, etc. Also keep in mind that most plants are using analog simplex mode, and you do have to be within a quarter mile to pick up the signal with an external mobile antenna I have found out when trying to search out these types of channels. Other larger plants use repeaters and also I've been told that newer radios for USPS Plant Ops will be MotoTRBO capable, as the digital voice is far more superior and intelligible on the noisy work room/plant floor than analog voice. So, don't be surprised to hear that buzz saw type noise (and if you don't know what it sounds like, the W2SJW.com website has a number of strange radio sounds to help identify what you ae hearing) on the USPS Plant Ops channels for your local area.

In addition to monitoring the Federal VHF-Hi and UHF bands, some agencies have moved over to the Motorola DTR 900 MHz radio series as well. So, don't be surprised to see them using those as well...

 

[ks4ui]

Usps

The Postal Service receives their frequency authorization from the Dept of Commerce. The large mail facilities radio comms are being converted from wideband VHF analog to analog narrowband UHF and many of the new UHF in house systems are using Moto Turbo so you will not be able to monitor those systems. The turbo systems are linked via the internet to other postal radio systems.

Postal intends to continue to use VHF for their wide area (non crim) radio systems to communcate with their own MVS Motor Vehicle Service trucks that are used to collect mail from various post offices throughout a large city and transport the mail to mail processing plants. USPS is testing with Nextel as a possible replacement for the wide area MVS radio systems.

Many of the old postal service frequencies are obsolete and are no longer used by the Postal Service, Example 418.300 MHz. Don't kid yourself, the Postal Service has some very interesting and sophisticated radio systems.