FirstNet ‘linked at the hip’ with 911 community, plans to hire 911 expert, Swenson says
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FirstNet ‘linked at the hip’ with 911 community, plans to hire 911 expert, Swenson says
Swenson also updated attendees on other areas of progress within FirstNet, including state consultations, public-notice proceedings and the draft request for proposal (RFP) that was released in late April that generated 666 questions from stakeholder groups.
“I couldn’t believe the number of questions we got about the draft RFP—over 650 questions came in about that RFP,” Swenson said. “I actually think that’s a good-news story, because that shows the degree of interest that people have about this project.”
Despite such a high interest level within certain aspects of the public-safety community, Swenson said it is important that FirstNet accelerate its outreach efforts.
“It’s still surprising to me how many people are unaware of this initiative,” she said. “It’s obviously very important for the people in this country, and it’s always surprising to find out that people are not that aware of it.”
Although FirstNet will leverage the same LTE technology that commercial carriers utilize, the system will differ from a carrier network in that it will be dedicated to public safety, Swenson said. In addition, the FirstNet system will serve rural and remote areas, as well as urban, she said.
“When we deploy this network, rural will get as much attention as urban; it will not be secondary,” Swenson said.