NG9-1-1
AMDSP is actively working with TELUS 9-1-1, AHS and other emergency response agencies to ensure that our data will meet the required standard.
First Nations and Municipalities are welcome to use for profit agencies to help with their data creation and submission. However, we can offer help through other AMDSP associated service partners and agencies which may provide lower cost or free solutions.
AMDSP plans to offer the same self-serve submission process which will meet the NG9-1-1 data requirements.
AMDSP will be revising our data specifications to align with the new data requirements and will also meet the needs of the PSAP agencies and other entities which rely on our data for emergency response and services to the public.
AMDSP is working with TELUS to ensure that we meet their official requirements as an aggregator of
NG9-1-1 data.
First Nations and Municipalities are welcome to use for profit agencies to help with their data creation and submission. However, we can offer help through other AMDSP associated service partners and agencies which may provide lower cost or free solutions.
AMDSP plans to offer the same self-serve submission process which will meet the NG9-1-1 data requirements.
AMDSP will be revising our data specifications to align with the new data requirements and will also meet the needs of the PSAP agencies and other entities which rely on our data for emergency response and services to the public.
AMDSP is working with TELUS to ensure that we meet their official requirements as an aggregator of
NG9-1-1 data.
Webinar 1:
Getting ready for NG9-1-1 (Next Generation 911)
View the recording of Webinar 1
Passcode: P7ZkLm&&
Getting ready for NG9-1-1 (Next Generation 911)
View the recording of Webinar 1
Passcode: P7ZkLm&&
FAQs
Will an LGA that becomes an AMDSP member still have to submit their NG9-1-1 data to Telus directly?
At this point in time the data will still need to be submitted by the LGA directly to Telus but the new AMDSP system will produce a package of data that can be submitted in the NENA format of the day. Each LGA will still need to sign an LGA agreement with Telus for the provision of NG9-1-1 services.
If the LGA must submit their own data what is the point of joining AMDSP?
The system that we are putting in place will be able to create a package of data for each member that meets the NENA requirements. We are currently working to make our system compatible with version 2 of the specification, version 3 is going to come out in the next year. The plan is to modify the NENA output as the standards change. In this way we can maintain a relatively static submission process and then create data that the members can use to submit to entities requiring NENA data.
Some additional benefits from AMDSP membership include:
What is the timeline for the AMDSP to have the new system in place to produce the NG9-1-1 datasets for our members?
The latest information we have received from Telus is that they will start to prepare to receive data after March 2025. The AMDSP is currently working on the new data specification and the building of a new submission system that will be used to validate and prepare data in the NG9-1-1 specification (which currently under development by the CRTC committees and NENA). Our goal is to have the new AMDSP specification available in Q1 2023 and to have the new submission system development started in Q2. Once development is complete members can start to migrate their data into the new system. It is expected that the migration will continue through 2023 as our members clean up their data to meet the requirements of the new specifications.
It is likely that the PSAP’s within the province will want to start working with the data sooner than later to ensure that they create efficient data update processes and familiarize themselves with the new data structure.
Tools for the preparation of address range data will be the next phase of system development and the AMDSP will be working with our members to help them in the creation and maintenance of this data.
What are the major changes in our data specification that will affect the submission of data to meet the NG9-1-1 requirements?
It is expected that most of the changes to our specifications will be relatively minor. There will be some clarification as to the use of the Unit field for addressing and some consistency tests for road names. The one major change expected is the need for address ranges on the road network. More information and tools will be made available to the members as we work on that issue which will take place after the development of the new specifications and rebuilding of the submission system. This also relates to the need to coordination between the PSAP’s and AMDSP. It is important that we work together to design a system that makes the update of the information efficient for all parties.
What can AMDSP members be doing now to prepare for the new data specification?
The initial implementation of the new AMDSP submission system and specifications will impose new constraints on street naming and addressing. There are some basic tests and data validation that the members can start now in preparation:
How will the required datasets be submitted to Telus and other entities such as the PSAP’s?
Discussions are taking place with Telus to make this process efficient for our members. Regardless of the mechanism used to ship the data to Telus AMDSP will be designing the new submission system so that it produces a package of data suitable for submission to Telus. The intention is to have the one submission process to AMDSP meet all of the current requirements of the system as well as the preparation of the data for the NG9-1-1 system. The same package of data may also be suitable for hand off to PSAP’s although it is unknown what processes will have to be done by each PSAP to update the data used in their particular system. We are currently trying to make connections to all the PSAP’s in Alberta to work with them in making this process efficient. Please have your PSAP contact our support staff or let our support staff know which PSAP your member areas use.
How will the members maintain and submit the required polygon data for PSAP boundaries and Emergency Service Zones?
One of the new requirements of the LGA agreement is the provision of PSAP boundaries and Emergency Service Zones. As many of our members do not have this data or the means to produce it AMDSP is working with Telus the PSAP’s and other entities to see what the effort level will be to compile this data into a consistent and complete form. It is hoped that one entity can take on this responsibility for all Alberta LGA’s. Please make sure you let the AMDSP support staff know who your PSAP is and provide a contact for them as well.
Can the AMDSP extend its service area beyond Alberta as some PSAP’s have to work with adjacent provinces and states?
Currently we have a few road segments and addresses in Montana, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and BC. Our members may submit and maintain information beyond their geographic boundaries on a case-by-case basis. This can be important information as there are cases where roads and places in Alberta can only be accessed from outside of Alberta. There are also addresses outside of Alberta that are essentially assigned by a community in Alberta. If the member knows of a contact in an adjoining municipality outside of Alberta, they should have someone contact us if they wish to become part of AMDSP or need information as to how they can set up their own system. The system set up by the AMDSP is suitable for use in any province or State.
Will there be a system put in place to report errors in the data?
The LGA agreement requires that the LGA attempt to fix errors identified in their data within 72 hours. The AMDSP will be preparing a ticketing system which can be used by PSAP’s, other entities that make use of AMDSP data to report errors to the contact at each LGA. It is advised that each member determine now who will be the contact for your LGA that can receive reports of issues within the data. It is hoped as well that the ticketing system can also be used to report issues back to the data users. For example: When an error is found by the LGA or an address is deleted it can be reported through the ticketing system that this same error needs to be removed from the data in the PSAP’s dispatch system. The originator of the ticket will need to close the ticket or be notified when the ticket is closed. Tickets that remain open will be followed up on by AMDSP support and the originator of the ticket.
Is the ESRI Validator to be used instead of the AMDSP/AMOS Validator for checking uploaded data?
The ESRI Validator that is available for free only tests if the data fields that you have in your dataset will match up with the required fields in the NENA specification. The AMDSP current submission system does not perform this test at the present time but does many more tests that are unavailable for free from ESRI.
The plan is to modify our AMDSP data specification to align with the NENA specification. Our specification committee is working toward this goal. Once we have adopted a new specification, we will be revising our submission system and informing our members of the changes that are required. The new submission system will perform all the testing that is done by the ESRI Validator tool plus many additional tests and even more testing than the current submission system.
How do I contact AMDSP support?
Contact AMDSP support at support@amdsp.ca or phone (403) 778-0979.
At this point in time the data will still need to be submitted by the LGA directly to Telus but the new AMDSP system will produce a package of data that can be submitted in the NENA format of the day. Each LGA will still need to sign an LGA agreement with Telus for the provision of NG9-1-1 services.
If the LGA must submit their own data what is the point of joining AMDSP?
The system that we are putting in place will be able to create a package of data for each member that meets the NENA requirements. We are currently working to make our system compatible with version 2 of the specification, version 3 is going to come out in the next year. The plan is to modify the NENA output as the standards change. In this way we can maintain a relatively static submission process and then create data that the members can use to submit to entities requiring NENA data.
Some additional benefits from AMDSP membership include:
- Validation routines to check the attribute and geometry of the member data.
- Provision of a submission standard which is simple to use and technologically neutral.
- Provision of a single mechanism to provide data to emergency response agencies such as AHS and many PSAPS and emergency agencies in the province.
- Advise and help in creating and maintaining the required data.
- A forum for connecting members together for solving common issues even beyond the scope of emergency response.
- An entity that can keep abreast of the issues pertaining to NG9-1-1 which is not for profit.
- A singly body that can work with all the associated entities involved in NG9-1-1 for the development and maintenance of polygon datasets that are needed for PSAP boundaries and Emergency Service Zones.
What is the timeline for the AMDSP to have the new system in place to produce the NG9-1-1 datasets for our members?
The latest information we have received from Telus is that they will start to prepare to receive data after March 2025. The AMDSP is currently working on the new data specification and the building of a new submission system that will be used to validate and prepare data in the NG9-1-1 specification (which currently under development by the CRTC committees and NENA). Our goal is to have the new AMDSP specification available in Q1 2023 and to have the new submission system development started in Q2. Once development is complete members can start to migrate their data into the new system. It is expected that the migration will continue through 2023 as our members clean up their data to meet the requirements of the new specifications.
It is likely that the PSAP’s within the province will want to start working with the data sooner than later to ensure that they create efficient data update processes and familiarize themselves with the new data structure.
Tools for the preparation of address range data will be the next phase of system development and the AMDSP will be working with our members to help them in the creation and maintenance of this data.
What are the major changes in our data specification that will affect the submission of data to meet the NG9-1-1 requirements?
It is expected that most of the changes to our specifications will be relatively minor. There will be some clarification as to the use of the Unit field for addressing and some consistency tests for road names. The one major change expected is the need for address ranges on the road network. More information and tools will be made available to the members as we work on that issue which will take place after the development of the new specifications and rebuilding of the submission system. This also relates to the need to coordination between the PSAP’s and AMDSP. It is important that we work together to design a system that makes the update of the information efficient for all parties.
What can AMDSP members be doing now to prepare for the new data specification?
The initial implementation of the new AMDSP submission system and specifications will impose new constraints on street naming and addressing. There are some basic tests and data validation that the members can start now in preparation:
- Make sure the road names are consistent in your road and address data. In many cases members have different road names in their address data that does not match what is in the road data.
- Make sure the data is complete and up to date. In many cases a good review of the information should be done to look for missing addresses, roads or common place names. If assistance is required to review your data contact AMDSP support at support@amdsp.ca or phone (403) 778-0979.
- Review the road classifications in your road data to make sure they make sense. Virtually eliminate the use of the value UNKNOWN in the rd_desc field and in the road name field. Refer to the rd_desc lookup table on the amdsp.ca website and check for road types that do not require a road name to be present. If you have the value UNKNOWN in these fields please eliminate this text as it is causing problems for our data users.
- Add resource roads and driveways to your data. This is particularly important in rural and resource intensive areas. One of the major objectives of the NG9-1-1 system is to use the ability to route geographically to a location rather than to a phone number or address. By having a complete road network this will aid in this process. Additional data is available from AMDSP support.
- Review and be aware of any units that you have in buildings where there are multiple suites within the same building with the same civic address. Also be aware of any cases of multiple buildings that use the same civic address number. This data will have to be carefully structured in the new format.
- Harmonize your roads and addressing with adjoining LGA’s. Often roads for an address are in an adjoining municipality or community. It is helpful for emergency responders to have a consistent addressing scheme and road name used in these areas.
- Make use of standard road naming conventions for creating your addresses and road names. Unique or unusual road and address schemes lead to confusion and delays for emergency response. For help contact the AMDSP for support.
How will the required datasets be submitted to Telus and other entities such as the PSAP’s?
Discussions are taking place with Telus to make this process efficient for our members. Regardless of the mechanism used to ship the data to Telus AMDSP will be designing the new submission system so that it produces a package of data suitable for submission to Telus. The intention is to have the one submission process to AMDSP meet all of the current requirements of the system as well as the preparation of the data for the NG9-1-1 system. The same package of data may also be suitable for hand off to PSAP’s although it is unknown what processes will have to be done by each PSAP to update the data used in their particular system. We are currently trying to make connections to all the PSAP’s in Alberta to work with them in making this process efficient. Please have your PSAP contact our support staff or let our support staff know which PSAP your member areas use.
How will the members maintain and submit the required polygon data for PSAP boundaries and Emergency Service Zones?
One of the new requirements of the LGA agreement is the provision of PSAP boundaries and Emergency Service Zones. As many of our members do not have this data or the means to produce it AMDSP is working with Telus the PSAP’s and other entities to see what the effort level will be to compile this data into a consistent and complete form. It is hoped that one entity can take on this responsibility for all Alberta LGA’s. Please make sure you let the AMDSP support staff know who your PSAP is and provide a contact for them as well.
Can the AMDSP extend its service area beyond Alberta as some PSAP’s have to work with adjacent provinces and states?
Currently we have a few road segments and addresses in Montana, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and BC. Our members may submit and maintain information beyond their geographic boundaries on a case-by-case basis. This can be important information as there are cases where roads and places in Alberta can only be accessed from outside of Alberta. There are also addresses outside of Alberta that are essentially assigned by a community in Alberta. If the member knows of a contact in an adjoining municipality outside of Alberta, they should have someone contact us if they wish to become part of AMDSP or need information as to how they can set up their own system. The system set up by the AMDSP is suitable for use in any province or State.
Will there be a system put in place to report errors in the data?
The LGA agreement requires that the LGA attempt to fix errors identified in their data within 72 hours. The AMDSP will be preparing a ticketing system which can be used by PSAP’s, other entities that make use of AMDSP data to report errors to the contact at each LGA. It is advised that each member determine now who will be the contact for your LGA that can receive reports of issues within the data. It is hoped as well that the ticketing system can also be used to report issues back to the data users. For example: When an error is found by the LGA or an address is deleted it can be reported through the ticketing system that this same error needs to be removed from the data in the PSAP’s dispatch system. The originator of the ticket will need to close the ticket or be notified when the ticket is closed. Tickets that remain open will be followed up on by AMDSP support and the originator of the ticket.
Is the ESRI Validator to be used instead of the AMDSP/AMOS Validator for checking uploaded data?
The ESRI Validator that is available for free only tests if the data fields that you have in your dataset will match up with the required fields in the NENA specification. The AMDSP current submission system does not perform this test at the present time but does many more tests that are unavailable for free from ESRI.
The plan is to modify our AMDSP data specification to align with the NENA specification. Our specification committee is working toward this goal. Once we have adopted a new specification, we will be revising our submission system and informing our members of the changes that are required. The new submission system will perform all the testing that is done by the ESRI Validator tool plus many additional tests and even more testing than the current submission system.
How do I contact AMDSP support?
Contact AMDSP support at support@amdsp.ca or phone (403) 778-0979.