All week, the Canadian media have been covering the problems with Canada’s 911 system: namely, that although over half the calls come from cell phones, dispatchers cannot locate people via their cell phone signals, leaving it up to the often-distressed caller to figure out where they are.
globeandmail.com: Cellphone firms ordered to fix 911 system to save lives.
Canada’s telecom regulator will force the cellphone industry to upgrade the country’s 911 system, which has fallen behind other parts of the world and may be contributing to deaths involving wireless calls for help.
Call me simple-minded, but a single question looms large to me as I read about this. I pay .75 a month on my cell phone bill for 911 service: if 911 can’t even find me when I call from my phone, what’s that fee for? The above article says that the cell phone providers don’t feel they should have to pay for system upgrades. Well I don’t feel that I should be paying for a system access fee or a 911 fee on top of my plan charges every month either, but I don’t really have a choice here in Canada, now do I? (Other than the crappy sub-providers. But that’s another rant entirely.)
Pay up, cell phone providers: It’s time you did something for your customers for a change.
