Syracuse (WSYR-TV) -- Onondaga, Cayuga, Madison and Oswego counties are hoping to make their 911 system better and less expensive. The counties are considering sharing services and possibly even consolidating.
Technology has become just as important as 911 operators themselves. The Onondaga County 911 center only spends half of its budget on personnel.
Onondaga County 911 Commissioner Bill Bleyle told NewsChannel 9, "In Onondaga County there's only one dispatch center and it doesn't inhibit our response in all areas of the county. We can actually do things through technology more effectively and faster than we used to be able to do it."
Onondaga County is the core of what could be the first of shared services. Onondaga County got a grant to spend $1.5 million for all of its equipment and its radio system. Other counties are expected to be a part of it as well. They don’t have to build it out, but they’ll be contributing money for maintenance costs.
“There are many other technology systems, computer-aided dispatch systems, telephone systems, other things that we can share and save money on a regular basis,” Bleyle continued.
Bleyle says 911 technologies are rapidly improving, which means equipment life cycles are shorter and shorter, increasing costs for counties. He says if they do something, they want to ensure it improves services and cuts costs.
Bleyle says the other counties should be on the shared radio system in the next few months. It will allow emergency responders to stay on the same channels even if they have to cross over county lines. The study of other areas for sharing or possible consolidations would start later this year if the counties get the grant money for it.
