Not Your Father’s Radio System

Keeping our citizens safe is the number one priority in any crisis situation but it’s of equal importance at non-critical times as well. Maryland’s Statewide Radio System, known as Maryland FiRST (First responders Interoperable Radio System Team), was created with these priorities in mind. The complex, multi-million dollar 700 MHz radio system, allows first responders, police officers and other public safety agencies to communicate with one another from the mountains of Garrett County to the shores of Ocean City. This interoperability across multiple public safety agencies at the Federal, State and local level is essential to a thorough, coordinated response.

No situation perhaps made this point clearer than during the Baltimore City civil unrest of 2015. The Maryland State Police, the Maryland Emergency Management Agency, the National Guard, MDTA Police, and the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems used the Statewide Radio System to streamline communication, responding to needs and monitoring the progress of their fellow agencies in keeping the peace in Baltimore City. In addition, the system provided interoperable communications with the New Jersey State Police, Pennsylvania State Police, Prince George’s County Police and others who assisted in maintaining the peace.

The Maryland FiRST radio system is commonly known as a 700 MHz P25 Phase II TDMA digital trunked radio system. That means it is designed to a common interoperable standard – it is a digital system and each tower site has multiple, pre-designated frequency paths available to automatically assign, by computers, to radio users. Think of this radio system as a large network of some 140 tower sites throughout Maryland connected together via fiber and microwave, all controlled by several different “core” sites. The “last mile” connection is via radio waves from the radio tower to and from the radio user. This is not your father’s radio system! With this new system, the world of old style radio systems has merged with modern IT and IP based networking to form a communications network with robust capabilities.

Since its initiation in 2009, the Statewide Radio Program has completed three of five phases of installments. Phase I was a massive undertaking, covering the I-95 Baltimore-Washington corridor to the Delaware state line. Phase II, covered the entire Eastern Shore and was completed in 2014. Phase 3, which provides radio access to Anne Arundel, Howard, Carroll, Cecil, Frederick and Harford counties, was completed just last month. Following Phase 3, radio towers in Washington, Allegany and Garrett counties will be installed, with an expected end date of winter 2017-2018. Phase 5 will cover southern Maryland and should be completed in 2019.