On April 14, 2022, the Ontario government announced it is investing $208 million over three years to enhance the province’s 9-1-1 emergency response system by moving it to a new platform referred to as Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG 9-1-1). The current planned implementation of NG 9-1-1 promises to eventually (a) make it easier to contact 9-1-1 using Real-Time Texting; (b) improve caller location accuracy; (c) allow for better information transfer for calls transferred between first responder agencies; and (d) provide additional data about the caller or information about the emergency.
The transition to NG9-1-1 mandated by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission is to be in place across Canada by March 4, 2025.
The province’s new funding will support the purchase of required equipment, modernize infrastructure and technology, and enhance training at call centres. There are 108 public safety answering points (PSAPs) across the province of Ontario that receives and processes emergency calls – they will need to upgrade to NG 9-1-1, or integrate with large PSAPs.
COMsolve’s certified installation technicians are currently assisting several Ontario municipalities with the installation of NG 9-1-1 platforms.