Adams County deployment a nice start, but FirstNet still has lots of work ahead of it
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Adams County deployment a nice start, but FirstNet still has lots of work ahead of it
While these considerable efforts are worthy of recognition and celebration, the sobering reality is that the Adams County network only has five operational LTE sites at the moment, with a total of 18 sites planned by the end of the year. Given that the FirstNet system could have as many as 36,000 sites nationwide, there’s a lot of equipment that needs to be deployed, even if you include the 14 public-safety LTE sites that are operational in Harris County, Texas (a system that is awaiting word from the state of Texas, which is trying to negotiate a spectrum-lease agreement with FirstNet).
System deployments should proceed much faster when FirstNet has its network design, procurement approach and business strategy in place, but all of those important elements still need to be determined. Meanwhile, there is a well-defined structure for reaching agreements with all 56 states and territories, but those talks are in the first three stages of a 46-step process.
Making this public-safety broadband network a reality is a daunting task, to say the least. But there are encouraging signs, one of which is the remarkable speed with which commercial carriers have been able to deploy LTE—it would be nice to see FirstNet mirror this execution when it begins to build in earnest.
Another reason for optimism is the resilience and persistence that has been embodied in the effort to ensure that first responders nationwide have the communications tools they need—a theme repeated by FirstNet Chairwoman Sue Swenson last week. No matter how discouraging circumstances get, there seems to be a willingness from key players to make the efforts necessary to keep the vision alive, because they believe it is the right thing to do—and, of course, they are right.