South Worcester County Communications Center Director Gregory Lynskey along with Dudley Police Chief Marek Karlowicz and Dudley Fire Chief Dean Kochanowski are pleased to announce major upgrades to the Public Safety Radio Communications System in Dudley. Following many years of planning, the Dudley Public Safety Agencies transitioned from antiquated analog radio channels to P25 digital radio channels effective in mid-May. 

These upgrades are a major step in improving operational safety for first responders in the community and bring the Dudley Public Safety Departments in compliance with national Public Safety Radio Interoperability standards. 

Director Lynskey stated, “This is a major milestone in what has been a nine-year project that would not have been possible without the support and assistance of the State 911 Department through grant funding opportunities. We are extremely pleased to have such a great working relationship with both the communities we serve and the State 911 Department, as is evidenced by their continued funding support to improving Public Safety in Webster and Dudley.” 

He added that funding for this project, along with the corresponding project in Webster, consisted of $139,467 in State 911 Support & Incentive Grant funding and $1,037,629 in State 911 Regional Development Grant funding. Grant funds were obtained over a total of ten years through nine different awards. Additionally, a total of $378,000 was approved between the May, 2022 and May, 2023 Webster Annual Town Meetings. $60,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds were also contributed to the project by Dudley. The total project costs for both communities was $1,615,100. 

 “Improving radio communication has been a priority for the Dudley Police Department for the last couple of years. SWCCC Director Lynskey dedicated great efforts to secure funding and planning for this much needed project. His efforts will improve officer safety and add reliability to our current radio system.” Chief Karlowicz said.

Chief Kochanowski stated, “Reliable fireground communications is not an option, it is a necessity. These upgrades will assist us in improving firefighter safety at incidents by having state of the art, reliable communications at our fingertips.” While there are no plans to encrypt any of the public safety radio channels and while the operating frequencies will not change for Dudley Police, we must note that many older home scanners will not be capable of receiving the new digital channels. Additionally, the operating frequency for Dudley Fire will change to a new frequency. 

Residents who wish to monitor the public safety departments via a home scanner will need to ensure their current scanner, or any newly purchased scanner, is capable of receiving P25 digital transmissions. The completion of this multi-year project marks a major step forward in public safety technology in both the communities of Dudley and Webster, technology that will serve both communities well for many years to come. Dudley Public Safety P25 Digital Radio Frequency Information: Dudley Police: 155.430 MHz – Network Access Code: 179 Dudley Fire: 154.3325 MHz – Network Access Code: 127