Envoy Government Communications Newsletter

E911, Where Are You?

By Ken Fong

Imagine driving on a desolate, unfamiliar road at midnight. The rain is pouring down in sheets, and your car spins out of control, crashing into a ditch. It's dark, you have no idea where you are, and you're not eager to start exploring.

Five years ago, the effectiveness of a wireless 911 call depended upon your knowledge of your location, and your willingness to wait. Today, these limitations are quickly falling away.

Thanks to a firm push from the federal government and the vision of companies like Sprint, the Enhanced 911 (E911) service—which gives emergency dispatchers the ability to answer wireless calls promptly, obtain the caller's mobile number, and pinpoint the calling location—is finally becoming a reality in cities and towns across the nation.

In 1996, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandated that all wireless carriers provide the capability for E911, and divided implementation of the initiative into two phases. In Phase I, the FCC required wireless carriers to be able to report the telephone number of a wireless 911 caller and the location of the antenna that received the wireless 911 call by April 1, 1998 or within six months of a request by a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP).

Phase II, being implemented now with staggered deadlines through 2005, requires that wireless carriers provide more precise information about a caller's location—Automatic Location Identification (ALI)—within 50 to 100 meters in most instances. To support ALI, carriers use either handset-based solutions like assisted global positioning systems (GPS) or network-based solutions like time difference of arrival, or TDOA, which sends timing signals to different antenna towers to triangulate location. Phase II also requires wireless carriers to sell E911-capable handsets.

Despite the strong FCC push for E911, some states, such as Rhode Island and the Commonwealth of Virginia, are much further ahead in E911 implementation than others. Rhode Island—widely considered the national E911 leader among states—has implemented Phase II statewide. Like most states, Rhode Island pays for its technology with help from a $1 monthly surcharge that shows up on residents' mobile phone bills.

Ray LaBelle, coordinator of Rhode Island's statewide E911 system, credited Sprint for helping his state become the national leader in the implementation of the technology.

"Sprint was the first company we tested with and the first one to be Phase II compliant," LaBelle said. "We have a very good track record with Sprint. If something goes snafu with the system, they work on it right away."

Having been involved in public safety since the earliest days of 911 services, Sprint understands the challenges and pressures inherent in mission-critical emergency communications. Sprint E911 systems combine innovative, flexible connectivity with industry-leading network architecture to deliver some of the industry's strongest solutions.

Sprint successfully launched E911 Phase II services across its network in Rhode Island on December 24, 2001, making it the first wireless carrier to go live with a handset-based location technology. "Sprint is a leader in E911 Phase II implementation. The entire Sprint nationwide PCS network is now Phase II compatible, and has been for more than a year and a half," said Jenny Walsh, communications manager at Sprint media relations.

Steve Marzolf, E911 coordinator for the Commonwealth of Virginia, said the vast majority of counties in his state have deployed Phase II E911 technology, and Sprint has been a big part of the reason.

"They have absolutely been a star when it comes to deployment of the handsets," Marzolf said. "They have been very aggressive in getting the handsets out. They have been a very good partner in working with us."

Another reason Virginia has had such success in implementing E911 technology is leadership. To manage the initiative, Virginia formed the Wireless E911 Services Board with the sole purpose of overseeing progress being made in distributing the technology statewide.

"The board acts as an advocate and focal point for E911 issues," Marzolf said. "They have pride of ownership and they push us forward."

FCC spokeswoman, Lauren Patrich said Sprint and other carriers are doing their part to help spread E911 to communities, particularly rural areas that traditionally lag behind in technology implementations. She encouraged consumers to ask their local and state governments to step up their efforts to deploy the life-saving technology.

Community implementation of E911 Phase II service is a complex process, requiring thoughtful, careful coordination among wireless carriers, PSAPs, local phone companies, governments, and other entities. For example, each local telephone company must be able to receive the information and transmit it to the 911 call takers or PSAPs. The equipment used by these PSAPs must also be updated to be made capable of receiving and processing location information.

"Sprint is actively engaged in the deployment and launch of live Phase II services in all of Sprint's markets where both the local exchange carriers and PSAPs are prepared to move forward," Walsh said. "Sprint has implemented E911 Phase II in 575 PSAPs in 24 states as of February 2, 2004."

E911 has become such a high-profile public safety issue that presidential candidates are taking notice. Earlier this year, Democratic contender John Kerry outlined a plan to develop a national E911 network as part of his homeland defense package. Kerry estimates that by the end of 2004, half of all emergency calls will originate from wireless phones.

Mobile phones are an integral part of our society. With over 160 million wireless subscribers today, public safety dispatchers expect to take almost 100 million wireless 911 calls this year. The number of emergency calls will only increase as the number of mobile phone subscribers grows—by 2008, there will be more than 200 million subscribers, or approximately 70 percent of the U.S. population.

Meeting the implementation challenges of E911 requires coordination and support from the FCC, wireless carriers, state and local governments, and many other stakeholders. Everyone involved recognizes the initiative's life-saving potential and importance. After all, the value of even a single life saved by E911 cannot be measured.

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