Old School Nationwide Frequencies

[gman4661]

Here are some older frequencies that might be useful. These are all analog UHF/VHF that any CCR or basic scanner should receive.

155.160 - National Search and Rescue (unofficial) - VSAR16
154.280 - Fire Mutual Aid - VFIRE21
155.475 - Formerly called National Law Enforcement Emergency Channel - VLAW31
155.340 - EMS HEAR - VMED28 (still used daily in some areas after about 50 years)
156.800 - Marine Ch. 16 (calling channel, one of many marine frequencies)
151.625 - Red Dot - common itinerant business frequency (color dot radios used to be sold at Sam's Club)

Some of the marine frequencies are used illegally in inland areas. Years ago, I heard a local commercial radio station using a marine channel for mobile communications. Hunters are known to use marine channels in some areas.

Also NOAA, GMRS, FRS and MURS. Some of the MURS frequencies are wide band, others narrow band.

There are many more, most being relatively new. This is a great listing, starting on page 24:

https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/NIFOG Ver 1.6.1A.pdf

 

[mmckenna]

Some of the marine frequencies are used illegally in inland areas. Years ago, I heard a local commercial radio station using a marine channel for mobile communications. Hunters are known to use marine channels in some areas.

Inland and away from "navigable waterways", some VHF marine channels are legally utilized for LMR use.

But, yeah, there's a lot that assume it's "just a fancy CB" and use it anyway.

 

[GTR8000]

It has become somewhat popular to use certain blocks of maritime frequencies for inland conventional and trunked systems. These licenses normally fall under PC - Public Coast Stations, Auctioned license types. I'm aware of a few counties in NY using them for conventional systems, as well as some trunking in PA using the same pool of frequencies, and the common thread is that they were licensed by Motorola many years ago.

 

[ecps92]

Inland and away from "navigable waterways", some VHF marine channels are legally utilized for LMR use.

But, yeah, there's a lot that assume it's "just a fancy CB" and use it anyway.

and even here on the Coast, some of the International Marine are allocated to Public Safety. A few times someone forgot to put the PL back on the Repeater after service resulted in some hefty foreign swearing by fishermen

 

[lu81fitter]

I recognize a couple of those right off the top of my head. 155.475 is used in Illinois. They call it ISPERN. Illinois State Police Emergency Radio Network. It's used as inter-op on vehicle chases, etc., and also gets used if state police get a hit on a wanted criminal. Also 155.340. MERCI. Medical Emergency Communications of Illinois. Ambulance to hospital comms.

 

[PACNWDude]

Had this argument with some sites I act as radio administrator for.....everyone wants "National Channels" which them makes me ask, which frequency band is that? I get 800 MHz and UHF T-Band answers usually.
Two good ones to listen to: 808.4875 and 853.4875 MHz....relegated to mostly public safety, but there are other legacy users with licenses noted up to 2032 being authorized to use these nationwide. Some are for crews working with "drones" and other science projects. Might be worth listening.

 

[ecps92]

Had this argument with some sites I act as radio administrator for.....everyone wants "National Channels" which them makes me ask, which frequency band is that? I get 800 MHz and UHF T-Band answers usually.
Two good ones to listen to: 808.4875 and 853.4875 MHz....relegated to mostly public safety, but there are other legacy users with licenses noted up to 2032 being authorized to use these nationwide. Some are for crews working with "drones" and other science projects. Might be worth listening.

No need to program a scanner for the 808 as No one would be using, nor does any radio use it for simplex.
Program ONLY the 853 as it would be either a Repeater or Simplex

 

[KB7MIB]

No need to program a scanner for the 808 as No one would be using, nor does any radio use it for simplex.
Program ONLY the 853 as it would be either a Repeater or Simplex

If you program the 808 frequency, you could pick up mobile/portable transmissions to the repeater, which would indicate that a user is *very* close to your location, and you should look very closely at the vehicles around you if you don't see an obvious marked cruiser.
Any repeater input frequency, VHF/UHF/700/800, could be monitored for this purpose. Unless you have a Uniden scanner that mutes encryption, even if the transmission is encrypted, you'd still know that a LEO is in close proximity to you, even if you didn't know what the transmission was about.

John
Peoria, AZ.

 

[N4KVE]

If you program the 808 frequency, you could pick up mobile/portable transmissions to the repeater, which would indicate that a user is *very* close to your location, and you should look very closely at the vehicles around you if you don't see an obvious marked cruiser.
Any repeater input frequency, VHF/UHF/700/800, could be monitored for this purpose. Unless you have a Uniden scanner that mutes encryption, even if the transmission is encrypted, you'd still know that a LEO is in close proximity to you, even if you didn't know what the transmission was about.

John
Peoria, AZ.

That’s what my friends, & I did years ago. We‘d program the input freq of PD’s to listen to. That way if we heard anything, we knew LE was “close by”. Those days are long gone.

 

[ladn]

We‘d program the input freq of PD’s to listen to. That way if we heard anything, we knew LE was “close by”. Those days are long gone.

Pretty much the same thing here in California. The California Highway Patrol's (CHP) main system was (and still is) low band VHF, so they used mobile analog VHF high band repeaters on 154.905 paired with officer-carried handhelds. Uniden incorporated this into their "Bear Tracker" scanners.

Technology marches on (well, more accurately limps or crawls) and CHP now uses P25 extenders in the 700 MHz range which have a very small RF footprint.

 

[nd5y]

There are many more, most being relatively new. This is a great listing, starting on page 24:

https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/NIFOG Ver 1.6.1A.pdf

You might want to get the latest version of that.

Field Operations Guides | CISA

www.cisa.gov

or if you want it all on one page

Common Public Safety - The RadioReference Wiki

wiki.radioreference.com

 

[fleef]

Pretty much the same thing here in California. The California Highway Patrol's (CHP) main system was (and still is) low band VHF, so they used mobile analog VHF high band repeaters on 154.905 paired with officer-carried handhelds. Uniden incorporated this into their "Bear Tracker" scanners.

Technology marches on (well, more accurately limps or crawls) and CHP now uses P25 extenders in the 700 MHz range which have a very small RF footprint.

Oh my, just reading this it finally dawned on me why the "Bear Tracker" name. Smokey Bear tracker!

 

[n3obl]

853.4875

 

[ecps92]

853.4875

till Nextel took it over for a period, no idea what it currently is used for in my region

 

[nd5y]

Since 800 MHz rebanding 853.4875/808.4875 is a public safety allocation. Before that (2007?) it was industrial/business itinerant.

 

[W1KNE]

till Nextel took it over for a period, no idea what it currently is used for in my region

The only agency using this in the North East that I can see is a tach in Rockland County, NY.

 

[nokones]

155.475 MHz was known as NLEMARS "National Law Enforcement Mutual Aid Radio System" (pronounced Nellie Mars).

In California 39.46 MHz, 154.920 MHz, and 460.025 MHz was known as CLEMARS "California Law Enforcement Mutual Aid System"; and 156.075 MHz CalCord "California Coordination" Channel.

154.280 MHz FireMARS "Fire Mutual Aid Radio System"; CLERS a.k.a. Inner-City or LawNet "California Law Enforcement Radio System" various VHF/ UHF freq pairs; and 153.755 MHz known as the LG radio system "Local Government".

And there was the 155.340 MHz California HEAR "Hospital Emergency Administrative Radio System"; and various 463 MHz channels known as MedComm "Medical Communications".