Victoria – If you have had to use 911 recently, you know how the delay is agonizing.
The Province’s $150-million investment will fund upgrades to B.C.’s 911 emergency communications system, which is aging and increasingly incompatible with evolving technologies. The upgrades to Next Generation 911 will allow people the choice to contact 911 through new options, such as real-time text, and to and caller location features.
E-Comm, which handles 99% of B.C.’s 911 call volume, is leading Next Generation 911’s implementation in most B.C. municipalities. Pending approval by the legislative assembly, the Province’s $150-million investment will help offset local governments’ costs for transitioning to Next Generation 911 and be divided into two parts:
- $90 million will be provided to E-Comm for technological upgrades; and
- $60 million will be provided to the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) to defray costs, such as staffing, training and quality assurance.
Next Generation 911 will improve public safety and confidence in the 911 network. Its features will make the 911 system more accessible for people who choose to communicate confidentially with emergency services, and for people with disabilities who will be able to use different text media to interact with operators. The technology’s capacity to provide real-time accounts of domestic violence and other emergencies and unfolding events will help dispatchers and improve emergency responses.
FYI:
- Local governments are responsible for their own 911 services.
- Next Generation 911 is a countrywide emergency communications network that enables transmission of all types of data; for example, real time texting and caller location features through GIS mapping.
- The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has mandated the implementation of Next Generation 911 and decommissioning of current 911 networks by March 4, 2025.
- E-Comm answers 911 calls for 25 of 27 regional districts in B.C.
