Difference between revisions of "Prince Edward Island (CA)"
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==Provincial Integrated Communication System (PICS)== | ==Provincial Integrated Communication System (PICS)== | ||
| − | PICS is | + | PICS is a Motorola SmartNet Type I, 800 MHz trunking system that covers all of Prince Edward Island. It has been in service since 1986 and is a joint project of Aliant and PEI EMO. |
| − | PICS | + | The system was planned and implemented 28 years ago to promote interoperability among all public safety agencies. However, since the equipment has become very outdated (most system are replaced after 10-15 years), there is speculation that the present PICS system will soon be replaced with an extension of the Nova Scotia Trunked Mobile Radio System ("TMR2") which is a Project 25 digital system currently in development. |
| − | + | PICS is shared by public service users and by commercial users. Every emergency agency in PEI has at least one PICS radio but not all agencies use PICS as their primary system. The RCMP utilizes its own 400 MHZ repeater system, however dispatch does have access to PICS and patching may be possible. Two of the three municipal police forces in the province (Summerside and Kensington) have full access to PICS but on an everyday basis use their own conventional 800 MHz repeaters. These conventional channels are integrated into PICS radios. Charlottetown Police use their own motoTRBO radio system. Several fire departments use the PICS system as their primary means of communications but most use VHF radios. | |
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PICS is made up of 6 sites, using four groups of frequencies. It is thought that each site regardless of location and traffic volume has 15 frequencies. These have been described as 1 dedicated control channel, 9 simulcast and 6 local voice channels. | PICS is made up of 6 sites, using four groups of frequencies. It is thought that each site regardless of location and traffic volume has 15 frequencies. These have been described as 1 dedicated control channel, 9 simulcast and 6 local voice channels. | ||
| − | There is a | + | There is a fail soft system whereby if trunking fails the system reverts to conventional repeaters and a recurring beep to indicate the failure. Users then revert to preassigned frequencies, as in a community repeater system. I am speculating that the local frequencies mentioned above are the conventional repeaters, but I could be wrong! It does seem odd that the system reverts to conventional repeaters rather than to site trunking. There are also simplex frequencies in the system, identified on radios by numbers only. It is not known if there are only common-use simplex frequencies, or also individual agency frequencies. |
| − | Repeater sites are connected by microwave. Sites are often co-located with other Aliant facilities or perhaps other owners' facilities, but generally they have their own tower. | + | Repeater sites are connected by microwave. Sites are often co-located with other Aliant facilities or perhaps other owners' facilities, but generally they have their own tower. One exception is at Caledonia where the repeater is on the Aliant Cell tower. |
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==RCMP== | ==RCMP== | ||
Revision as of 12:17, 16 April 2014
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Provincial Integrated Communication System (PICS)
PICS is a Motorola SmartNet Type I, 800 MHz trunking system that covers all of Prince Edward Island. It has been in service since 1986 and is a joint project of Aliant and PEI EMO.
The system was planned and implemented 28 years ago to promote interoperability among all public safety agencies. However, since the equipment has become very outdated (most system are replaced after 10-15 years), there is speculation that the present PICS system will soon be replaced with an extension of the Nova Scotia Trunked Mobile Radio System ("TMR2") which is a Project 25 digital system currently in development.
PICS is shared by public service users and by commercial users. Every emergency agency in PEI has at least one PICS radio but not all agencies use PICS as their primary system. The RCMP utilizes its own 400 MHZ repeater system, however dispatch does have access to PICS and patching may be possible. Two of the three municipal police forces in the province (Summerside and Kensington) have full access to PICS but on an everyday basis use their own conventional 800 MHz repeaters. These conventional channels are integrated into PICS radios. Charlottetown Police use their own motoTRBO radio system. Several fire departments use the PICS system as their primary means of communications but most use VHF radios.
PICS is made up of 6 sites, using four groups of frequencies. It is thought that each site regardless of location and traffic volume has 15 frequencies. These have been described as 1 dedicated control channel, 9 simulcast and 6 local voice channels.
There is a fail soft system whereby if trunking fails the system reverts to conventional repeaters and a recurring beep to indicate the failure. Users then revert to preassigned frequencies, as in a community repeater system. I am speculating that the local frequencies mentioned above are the conventional repeaters, but I could be wrong! It does seem odd that the system reverts to conventional repeaters rather than to site trunking. There are also simplex frequencies in the system, identified on radios by numbers only. It is not known if there are only common-use simplex frequencies, or also individual agency frequencies.
Repeater sites are connected by microwave. Sites are often co-located with other Aliant facilities or perhaps other owners' facilities, but generally they have their own tower. One exception is at Caledonia where the repeater is on the Aliant Cell tower.
RCMP
Prince Edward Island is one of eight provinces of Canada in which the RCMP operates as both the provincial and federal police force. In addition it is also the municipal police force in much of the province. The RCMP organization in PEI is designated as L Division, with its own commanding officer and headquartered in Charlottetown. This is the smallest division in Canada, in terms of geography, and also I would guess, in number of personnel. L Division is part of the Atlantic area of the RCMP, which has a regional headquarters in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
As in other provinces the field structure of the RCMP below divisional headquarters was in the past to have subdivisions (not necessary in PEI due to its small size) and beneath those individual detachments. Today this is evolving towards a consolidated structure in which detachments are joined in districts or in large detachments. The individual former detachment locations may still remain as local offices of the district. In some cases they may still be referred to informally as detachments but do not have the autonomy of the past. L Division was, in the recent past, made up eight detachments, which are now combined into three districts (Western, Central and Eastern)
The hub of the system is the Stratford repeater (across the river from Charlottetown) and a microwave link from there to telecoms at L Division HQ located in Charlottetown. The call sign for telecoms is XJD916. There formerly were 8 detachments but now instead there are three districts.
The radios have displays and generally, a name rather than number identifies the channel. In addition to these frequencies it is possible or likely that the RCMP in Prince Edward Island may also utilize the national bank of 420 MHz frequencies allocated to the RCMP and CSIS, for special uses. All of this usage is likely to be encrypted and therefore unavailable to the casual listener.
Municipal Police Forces
There are three independent municipal police forces in the province of Prince Edward Island:
- Kensington
- Summerside
- Charlottetown
Kensington operate on the PICS system while Charlottetown have their own motoTRBO system. Summerside have their own conventional 800MHz repeater system within the PICS channel plan.
EMS
As of 2006 the five private ambulance organizations in Prince Edward Island have been superceded by Island EMS which now operates all ambulances (totalling approximately 16 units). Island EMS is owned and operated by Medavie Blue Cross which also operates EMC, the province-wide ambulance system in Nova Scotia, and is about to do the same in New Brunswick. Island EMS is operated separately from the Nova Scotia operation, with different logos and equipment.
10 Codes
EMS:
- Code 1 - Respond Lights & Siren
- Code 2 - Respond No Lights Or Siren
- Code 3 - Hospital Transfer
- Control - Dispatch
POLICE:
- 10-1 - Receiving poorly
- 10-2 - Receiving well
- 10-4 - Message received
- 10-6 - Busy
- 10-7 - Out Of Service
- 10-8 - In Service / Available
- 10-9 - Repeat Message
- 10-10 - Negative
- 10-11 - Road Stop
- 10-17 - En Route (To Call)
- 10-21 - Phone Call
- 10-23 - On Scene
- 10-27 - Drivers Licence Information
- 10-28 - Vehicle Registration Information
- 10-29 - Criminal Records Check
- 10-30 - Danger use caution
- A = Armed and Dangerous
- C = Contagious Disease
- E = Escapee
- M = Mental
- S = Suicidal
- V = Violent
- 10-95 - Update Status (Are You OK)
For a complete list of scanner codes, please visit ScanPEI
TAFL Search Engine
This is a search tool for Industry Canada's Frequency Allocation Database. They refer to this as the TAFL (Technical and Administrative Frequency Lists) This will allow you to search for allocated frequencies anywhere in Canada. Frequencies for law enforcement, military and other sensitive organizations are not included in the database.
- Try it out here