That is according to project designers who updated emergency personnel from across the county Wednesday evening on the ongoing implementation of a next generation countywide public safety radio system.
"We continue to move forward," Erie County Executive Kathy Dahlkemper told those in attendance at the public meeting, held at the Perry Hi-Way Hose Company's Social Hall in Summit Township.
County officials, a consultant, and an equipment vendor are still finalizing plans for eight new radio towers to be built on non-taxable land. The entire $26.5 million project consists of those tower sites, nine existing ones, and new radio equipment for emergency departments spread across the county.
They also continue to gather feedback from local police, fire and EMS departments. The new system will be designed to accommodate existing needs and future growth of up to 25 percent, said Mike McGrady, president of MCM Consulting Group.
McGrady provided an updated schedule that calls for the project to be completed by the end of 2018.
The radio infrastructure is expected to be installed by April 2018, with emergency personnel beginning to migrate onto the new system in July of that year. Final testing will be completed by September 2018 with full implementation by December.
"We're confident this schedule will stick," McGrady said.
The first phase of the project, which included the installation of a new dispatch console system for Erie County telecommunicators, was finished in February, and has already resulted in improved audio quality, officials said.
When the full project is finished, it will allow emergency personnel from around the county to seamlessly communicate with each other and with personnel in surrounding counties. Current radio technology is obsolete and does not allow for efficient countywide communication.
Erie County Council approved the project in August 2015. The county floated a capital improvement bond of about $19.5 million, for no longer than 15 years, and agreed to use $7 million of roughly $30 million in reserve funds to pay for the system.
McGrady said the project is currently $3 million under budget.
Nico Salvatori can be reached at 870-1714 or by email. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNsalvatori.
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