From AM-NY:NYPD street officers are carrying radios that don’t work in the subway, making it impossible to call for help. The city has spent 15 years and millions of dollars trying to resolve the problem, but it’s still unclear when it might be fixed.
“Not being to communicate in this day and age is ludicrous,” said Nicholas Casale, a retired NYPD detective and the MTA’s former Deputy Director of Security for Counterterrorism. He pointed to Madrid and London as examples of transit hubs increasingly becoming terrorism targets.
In NYC, transit police can radio one another, but they can’t talk to street-level officers, who use a different frequency. To bridge the communication divide, the MTA and NYPD agreed in the mid-1990s to create a uniform radio network in the subway using above-ground frequencies.
But after spending $144 million in transit funds, only an FDNY network has been established.
The multiple police frequencies technically are trickier to resolve, and the project has been beset with numerous technical issues, mainly audio interference, experts said.
The NYPD, the Transit Authority and City Hall have deflected responsibility. The mayor’s office referred requests for comments to the NYPD, which in turn directed questions to the MTA.
7 comments:
These new radios have no power and are all digital packet communication. These new stinkin radios work more like cellphones, once a couple of these digital packets "handshaking" get lost in a weak signal your done, nothing !
Its like pulling your internet connection wile on Skype
Antennas and tranceivers in both the tunnels and above ground. (like train moterman have)would help but be a HUGE cost now after the fact.
They should have combined the MTAs train system so it can at least trunk with a local police pct frequency (both above and below ground) for emergenys.
The way it is now each communication signal must travel all the way into Manhattan (and be heard) processed into packets and sent back.
The analog old low band VHF FM talkies were much better. The signals bounced off almost anything and could talk to each other 1 to 1 down to an almost zero signal.
I guess the city LEARNED NOTHING from 911 when 5000+ digital radios tried to trunk off a handful of repeaters between 450 and 900Mhz.
I think a $30 5 watt AM CB talkie off Ebay made in 1972 would talk from an underground subway station up to the street (or next station) better then what the cops were "upgraded" too.
I don't listen to the transit police on my scanner at home, but I do listen in on RTO(Train Operators talking to their supervisors)and the reception is pretty good.
The buses are a different story. I can hear the MTA Bus frequencies fine but with NYCT Bus it's just the opposite.
The transit radio system is old and outdated. I believe they plan on upgrading it in the near future, just a matter of time.
They should try Sirius XM radio!
Baba Booey
Baba Booey
Even better:
Frank of Queens and John of Staten Island
Wurrrrld Solutrean Day is coming!
Two giggling morons sitting at the anchor desk with opened laptops. How au courant!
The transit radio system is old and outdated. I believe they plan on upgrading it in the near future, just a matter of time.
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Yeah SURE!!! They've said that before. We're goign to update this and that and that. DOnt' worry everyone! It'll only take 100 years like with the LIRR switches. They kept that old technology for 100 years and ONLY NOW are they trying to update the ENTIRE system. They act as if the new IT technologies have just been engineered. It took 100 years! This will take another 100! And when they do, they're going to make a big deal out of it, but by then, it'll be long overdue.
So they spent $144 million and have nothing to show for it...
The terrorists have won.
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