OTTAWA – Following the British Columbia government’s Part 1 application filed last month requesting the CRTC mandate a testing environment for Canada’s next-generation 911 (NG911) networks, a group of representatives of Canadian public safety answering points (PSAPs) has filed its own Part 1 asking for a commission decision in support of a pre-production NG911 network and quality assurance program.
Signatories to the application — dated Sept. 22, filed with the CRTC on October 4 and posted on the CRTC’s website Tuesday — include representatives from Barrie Fire Dept., BC Emergency Health Services, City of Calgary, City of Lethbridge, E-Comm 9-1-1, Edmonton Police Service, Grande Prairie Fire Department, Hamilton Fire Dept., Hamilton Police Service, Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office, Ontario Provincial Police, RCMP E-Division, Saanich Fire Dept., Strathcona County, Toronto Fire Services and Toronto Police Service.
One of the new capabilities provided by the NG911 networks being set up by Bell, Telus and SaskTel is the ability to receive images and videos from distressed callers. In their application to the CRTC, the PSAPs say part of their preparation for the transition from Enhanced 911 (E911) to NG911 is “ensuring there is a robust testing mechanism in place” and “PSAPs have an increased role in testing as a result of new technologies being deployed” in the new emergency networks.
“The current proposed testing solution negotiated in the Emergency Services Working Group (ESWG) means NG9-1-1 network providers (TELUS, Bell, SaskTel) will implement changes directly to the production NG9-1-1 networks without PSAPs having the opportunity to test the change against their systems configuration,” the PSAPs’ application reads.
In the event of NG911 system failures, there would be a considerable risk to citizen and first responder safety, they say. To mitigate the risk of unexpected system failures and emergency service impacts due to the introduction of changes in the carrier network, the PSAPs want to be able to connect to a pre-production NG911 network to conduct necessary testing prior to changes being made.
They also want a nation-wide program for quality assurance using a pre-production NG911 network, to manage coordinated system changes among originating network providers (ONPs), NG911 network providers and PSAPs.
The PSAPs note in their application the new NG911 network relies on IP technology, “which is complex and the implementations by the ONPs, NG9-1-1 network providers and PSAP equipment vendors are immature.”
The transition to NG911 requires PSAPs to procure and maintain an IP-based call handling system, which must integrate with both the NG911 network and other internal PSAP systems, they say. “Various aspects of this network and the integration to the PSAP will require regular testing over the coming years,” their application says.
The PSAPs’ final request in their application is for “A sustained and equitable funding mechanism to support the development, maintenance and resourcing of testing infrastructure as well as the operational requirements of an integrated quality assurance program. The funding model should take into consideration responsibilities of PSAPs, ONPs, and NG9-1-1 network providers, following the same demarcation as production environments.”
The CRTC is accepting comments on the application until Nov. 9.
