PPSTN Radio
Provincial Public Safety Telecommunications Network (PPSTN) is a public safety radio network managed through a partnership between the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), SaskPower and the RCMP.
PPSTN provides public safety users such as fire departments, police services, emergency medical services, health services, conservation officers, highway patrol, corrections, wildlife, First Nations, emergency preparedness and volunteer search
and rescue groups with interoperable radio communications that allows them to communicate with each other during times of emergency.
The PPSTN Governance consists of one member from each partner and is responsible for providing strategic direction, approving operating and capital budgets, policies and managing the PPSTN.
Nearly 11,000 radios are currently on the network and it continues to grow, along with 290 repeater sites that enable signals to be transmitted and received over a wide area.
While involvement in PPSTN is optional, widespread participation enhances interoperability to the fullest extent, leading to improved public safety communications and responses.
Participation
A user agency must qualify through its jurisdictional authority to order radio equipment supplied as part of this program.
Frontline agencies that have been qualified and possess approved radio equipment are eligible to utilize the system, which encompasses:
- Municipal fire and rescue services
- Municipal police; other enforcement agencies
- EMS services; Health Facilities
- Provincial ministries and agencies
- Volunteer search and rescue chapters
- First Nations Emergency Management
Application forms are available by calling the PPSTN Helpdesk at 1-888-953-3693
or send an email to spsaclientonboarding@gov.sk.ca.
Fees and Costs
The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency will retain ownership of all equipment it has purchased and distributed through the program and/or allocated to user agencies.
A Provincial User Fee has been established to help reduce costs for network users. User agencies pay $65.00 per radio per month. The actual cost of operating the radios is estimated to range from $70.00 to $90.00 per radio per month. The difference between the actual cost and the end users cost is funded by the Sask911 levy on consumer telephone bills as set by The Saskatchewan Telecommunications Act.
Additional costs could include:
- Shipping – The program will cover the cost of shipping the initial order of radios to a user agency. All subsequent shipping costs for maintenance and repair will be the responsibility of the agency.
- A video and written installation guide will be provided with the radios; however, it is recommended that experienced installers be utilized to ensure proper equipment operation.
- Installation/Maintenance/Repair – The user agency is responsible for these costs.
- Radio Accessories – Program allocated mobile radios come with a basic mounting apparatus. Portable radios come with an antenna, battery and one charger per agency. All additional accessories such as vehicle antennas, cables, microphones, etc. are the responsibility of the user agency.
For municipalities that contract policing services, the RCMP manages the radios for the municipalities that contract policing services with them.
Training
PPSTN Radio training is available to those agencies that have a signed dispatch contract with the SPSA. Courses are delivered online, in a classroom, or with a combination of both methods. There are four training modules which each take approximately one to two hours to complete and include:
- Full Radio Training, focusing on new radio users.
- Essentials Radio Training, refresher for experienced and new radio users.
- Tactical Communications, multi-agency communications for all radio users.