Mystery Frequency - Western MA

[LathamScan]

I was doing a frequency search today in Latham, NY when I came across the following frequency:

153.9575 MHz. CTCSS 206.5 Hz.

It was a repeater, and it sounded like a police department. The station that identified was 'Springfield' and they were talking to '61' about a vehicle stopped at the Armory Street rotary. I didn't hear anything after that.

The signal was very strong from my location which makes me wonder if it is really Springfield, MA. Also, I checked for an Armory Street in Springfield MA, which there is, but I didn't see a rotary on it (Google Earth). Also, I thought Springfield PD was on UHF.

FCC license searches as well as searching the RR database found nothing.

Has anyone monitored this frequency before? Is it a regional or inter-op channel for the Springfield area?

Thanks for any info.

Kevin

 

[Mick]

Possibly 153.950?

I wonder if your scanner was picking up Springfield, Mass on 153.95 of their WQCC994 license?
ULS License - Public Safety Pool, Conventional License - WQCC994 - SPRINGFIELD, CITY OF

Springfield has a street that looks like a "rotary" where it intersects with Liberty Street and circles around Highway 20.
42 07 11.88 N, 72 35 05.57 W

Latham, NY is about 73 miles from Springfield, MA.

 

[RobKB1FJR]

Looks like it may have something to with the WEMLEC radio system.

 

[N1BHH]

No 153.95 on that license, maybe more likely 153.965, 153.9575 is not licensed in the area, Blackstone is far to the east.

 

[ecps92]

There is a Rotary, right by the SP Barracks ....

Maybe 153.9575 is now out your way and the input is something from the Springfield area [Springfield PD is UHF], maybe one of the Colleges [Campus Police] in Springfield? STIC, SCC etc

Anyone search 206.5 in the RR DB for MA/NY??

Springfields Interop is known as WEMLEC

Hampden County Departments belong to Western Mass Law Enforcement Council (WEMLEC)
Law Enforcement Operations are on 460.2250R PL 206.5 with crossbanded links on 155.4750 (PL 173.8) and 858.7375R (PL 156.7)

I was doing a frequency search today in Latham, NY when I came across the following frequency:

153.9575 MHz. CTCSS 206.5 Hz.



It was a repeater, and it sounded like a police department. The station that identified was 'Springfield' and they were talking to '61' about a vehicle stopped at the Armory Street rotary. I didn't hear anything after that.

The signal was very strong from my location which makes me wonder if it is really Springfield, MA. Also, I checked for an Armory Street in Springfield MA, which there is, but I didn't see a rotary on it (Google Earth). Also, I thought Springfield PD was on UHF.

FCC license searches as well as searching the RR database found nothing.

Has anyone monitored this frequency before? Is it a regional or inter-op channel for the Springfield area?

Thanks for any info.

Kevin

 

[skierp20]

Yeah, that definitely sounds like PD. 61 is their designation for the watch commander.

I was almost going to say it was AMR, but we operate no repeated channels, and post our trucks at the 'rotary' and have a post designated as '61.' (State St and Benton Rd)

 

[Mick]

Good catch N1BHH. I did intend to type "153.965" instead of 153.95.

I wonder if your scanner was picking up Springfield, Mass on 153.95 of their WQCC994 license?
ULS License - Public Safety Pool, Conventional License - WQCC994 - SPRINGFIELD, CITY OF

Springfield has a street that looks like a "rotary" where it intersects with Liberty Street and circles around Highway 20.
42 07 11.88 N, 72 35 05.57 W

Latham, NY is about 73 miles from Springfield, MA.

 

[ecps92]

ULS License - Public Safety Pool, Conventional License - WQCC994 - SPRINGFIELD, CITY OF
is licensed to Springfield PD [for WEMLEC] at a few sites.

Low-High-UHF freq's. Nothing in the attachments other than letters of Adj-Channel users OK'n the license back in 2005

Looks like it could be a Multi-Band Patch, similar to the exisiting WEMLEC patch [on the PD site] Most of the Regional Police networks are expanding beyond PD only. ie: BAPERN and NEMLEC in Eastern Mass are now Multi-Hazard vs Police Only. [DPW, Public Health etc]

Good catch N1BHH. I did intend to type "153.965" instead of 153.95.

 

[DaveNF2G]

I vox recorded 153.9575/206.5 from Waterford, NY, overnight. It is a police interagency channel involving the City of Springfield, MA, and surrounding towns. I did an extensive search for licenses on this frequency in MA, CT, VT, NH, and NY. I found no base or repeater station licenses that would account for such traffic being heard on this frequency.

 

[W1KNE]

153.965 is the Berkshire County sheriff's department, which is also used for the intercounty town dispatch.
When the county is using the frequency for such purpose, the PL is 107.2.
However recently, WMLEC was tied into this frequency for interoperation use. When the WMLEC system is transmitted over this frequency, the PL is 206.5. (Which is the same for WMLEC's 460.225 used in the Springfield area). You were hearing the WMLEC system being repeated via a cross-band repeater patch to the Berkshire County sheriff's transmitter on 153.965. I have heard this a number of times while up in the Berkshires and can confirm all of this from first hand monitoring.

 

[DaveNF2G]

That explains everything. Thanks!

I knew about Berkshire County's repeater, but only with the 107.2 tone. The tie-in explains the rest.

 

[skierp20]

Wow.. that is an awesome pickup! Well done!

 

[LathamScan]

I have since picked up yet another station repeating WEMLEC traffic, this time on low band.

39.22 MHz. with a CTCSS tone of 206.5 Hz.

I logged this back on 5/15/10 from one of the local shopping centers in Latham, NY. It also was a pretty strong signal. I did a RRDB check of 39.22 but found no MA stations listed.

Kevin

 

[ecps92]

Kevin there are a few towns in MASS that use 39.22 and with the changes to WEMLEC and FCROG they may have changed CTCSS Tones.

Royalston, Phillipston, Warwick and in the Past Orange [now MSP 800] used 39.22 altho a different tone.

Licenses from the FCC are:
Ashburnham, Athol, Orange, Phillipston, Royalston, Warwick and Winchendon

Info from ScanNewEnglands FCC DB Search

I have since picked up yet another station repeating WEMLEC traffic, this time on low band.

39.22 MHz. with a CTCSS tone of 206.5 Hz.

I logged this back on 5/15/10 from one of the local shopping centers in Latham, NY. It also was a pretty strong signal. I did a RRDB check of 39.22 but found no MA stations listed.

Kevin