2021-07-29

Australian NSW Government Delivers 150 New Public Safety Network Radio Sites

Source: NSW Government
Curated by: Gert Jan Wolf - Editor-in Chief for The Critical Communications Review

The NSW Government has delivered 150 new Public Safety Network radio sites, increasing operational and mission-critical communications coverage for first responders.

Next to Australia’s triple zero emergency hotline, the PSN is the most critical communications network in NSW.

Through the Critical Communications Enhancement Program (CCEP), NSW Telco Authority is expanding the PSN’s footprint for emergency services organisations (ESOs). This radio infrastructure provides enhanced encryption options for first responders, allowing crews to communicate on a single, integrated network.

NSW Telco Authority Acting Managing Director Kristie Clarke said delivering 150 new sites was an important milestone in community and first responder safety.

“This significant achievement brings us closer to delivering the NSW Government’s commitment to build a single, integrated radio network to enhance critical communications coverage for the state’s emergency services,” said Ms Clarke.

“This is technology that saves lives. The PSN will consolidate multiple separate agency radio networks into one network, allowing critical communications to occur across a resilient and efficient network.
“From the Tweed to Bega and west to Broken Hill, we are investing in first-class communications infrastructure to protect people and places.”

Ms Clarke said the PSNs sites were crucial in protecting communities and supporting the Rural Fire Service, Police, Fire and Rescue, Ambulance, and the State Emergency Service during the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires and March 2021 floods.

“Through the CCEP, the NSW Government is investing more than $1.3 billion in critical communications, the biggest infrastructure investment of its kind in a generation,” Ms Clarke said.
The CCEP has expanded the PSN’s land coverage by 10 per cent to reach over 41 per cent of the state, the equivalent of more than 80,000 km2. Population coverage has risen from 86 per cent to 94 per cent, an increase of over 600,000 people.