EE UK Test 4G Rapid Response Vehicles on Saddleworth Moor

Mobile operator EE (BT) have put their new Rapid Response Vehicles (RRV) to the test with fire crews on Saddleworth Moor, which are intended to be used as a way to deploy 4G network coverage in remote areas under the government’s new £1.2bn Emergency Services Network (ESN).

At present the new ESN, which is designed to replace the Motorola-owned Airwave network (TETRA), is going through somewhat of a rough patch due to concerns over rising costs and delays (here), but that hasn’t stopped EE from showcasing some of their related solutions for delivering on the contract.

In particular a spate of recent moor fires have given them the opportunity to show how their RRVs can be deployed to deliver coverage in remote areas during major incidents, such as disasters, network outages or to generally help the emergency services.

The operator has a number of tools for delivering RRVs, such as airborne drones and balloons (details here), but in the case of Saddleworth Moor they’ve opted instead for a special 4×4 off road vehicle, which carries its own extendable 4G mobile tower to provide temporary coverage.

Rich Templeman, Head of ESN Operations at EE, said:

“This is a great example of how we will be able to use the fleet of Rapid Response Vehicles when ESN is live. The operational areas for incidents like this can be beyond the road coverage that exists today, and this is one great solution for that.”

The vehicle was apparently able to cover the primary operational area of more than 2 square kilometres and has carried more than 750 calls per day over 4G. Below is a picture of another RRV from last year.