Public Safety Seeks Revised Rules for 4.9 GHz Band

APCO said 4.9 GHz spectrum “has only been allocated for public safety use since 2002,” though it agreed the band “has not lived up to its potential.” Changes are needed if the FCC wants to see more use of the spectrum, such as for wireless backhaul, APCO said (http://xrl.us/bnxewr). “The actual number of licenses (over 2,500) may not tell the full story, as flexible, wide-area licensing has allowed for a plethora of deployments and devices in many areas that are not fully reflected in the FCC’s licensing database,” the group said. “Unfortunately, that flexible, unplanned and uncoordinated use has also limited the potential for expanded mission-critical public safety communications in the band."

The FCC should allow for development of a plan for the spectrum in “a reasonable time frame,” with input from interested parties, including current and potential licensees, APCO said. “The most significant problem facing the 4.9 GHz band is the lack of effective frequency coordination and planning. Licensees are expected to ’self-coordinate’ to address interference,” the group said. “In reality, there appears to be little or no real coordination which, when combined with the lack of national or regional planning, creates chaotic, haphazard equipment deployment that is incompatible with the needs of interference-free, mission-critical radio communications."

Los Angeles County said public safety should retain exclusive use of the 4.9 GHz band. The county said mandating better frequency coordination would result in increased use of the spectrum. “The current disarray in the band is inefficient, prone to interference, and discourages its use for mission-critical communications,” the county said (http://xrl.us/bnxe3h). “The County, therefore, supports the need for formal frequency coordination, utilizing the current certified public safety frequency coordinators, as well as local frequency advisors and committees wherever possible. The current 700 MHz Regional Planning Committees (or an entity designated by the committees) should also be part of the planning and frequency assignment process."

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials supported expanding eligibility to use the band, as contemplated in the NPRM. The group cited a real-world example: The Washington State Department of Transportation. WSDOT got FCC clearance to use 4.9 GHz fixed links to mitigate congestion and reduce emissions along Interstate 5 in Pierce, King and Snohomish counties. “WSDOT has approximately 100 point-to-point locations licensed and another 80 locations in various stages of being planned, budgeted and installed,” the group said (http://xrl.us/bnxe7o). “Others are pending licensing utilizing the 4.9 GHz spectrum for low cost point-to-point, point-to-multipoint and mesh applications. These low cost, medium capacity links are vital to the state’s transportation system.” The system allows the WSDOT “to make real-time decisions on traffic and road conditions on the monitored state and federal highway systems,” the filing said.

The Alarm Industry Communications Committee urged the FCC to expand the list of who can use the 4.9 GHz band. “AICC supports the expansion of eligibility for access to and use of the 4.9 GHz bands, particularly to safety-related service providers such as alarm companies,” the group said (http://xrl.us/bnxe4t). “Allowing such entities to make use of the 4.9 GHz band not only maximizes the use of the spectrum, but does so in a way that promotes its intended use, which is to further public safety. The public safety community has explored the possibility of having safety-related entities participate in FirstNet on a limited basis, as a way to foster beneficial interoperability and to create a source of additional revenue for FirstNet. If safety-related service providers can operate on the same spectrum as first responders, it can improve their ability to send emergency communications to the public safety broadband network.”