Traffic Manager Radio Service (Airwave)

Tender description

Airwave is the fundamental technology that provisions National Highways (NH) with their Mission-Critical Communications (MCC) capability, providing internal critical voice communications between Traffic Officers and the emergency services. The Airwave service aims to ensure NH has continuity of service capability that facilitates a safe working environment on the Strategic Road Network (SRN) and ensures NH can communicate securely with the 3 Emergency Services whilst also meeting its obligations as a Category 2 Responder. Lot 1: National Highways utilises numerous communication technologies in order to ensure the Strategic Road Network (SRN) is managed in both a safe and efficient manner. One of the key technologies leveraged is Airwave, which underpins National Highways Mission-Critical Communications (MCC) capability. Airwave is a mission-critical radio network based on the TETRA standard with call pre-emption and prioritisation capabilities and end-to-end encryption to provide highly reliable and secure voice communications to users with nationwide coverage. The MCC radio services provided by Airwave enables Traffic Officers (TOs) and Service Providers (SPs) to broadcast clear and concise communications across secure and reliable channels with one another and to Regional Operating Centres (ROCs); in addition to facilitating interoperability with the Emergency Services across the entire strategic road network (SRN). Airwave provisions the effective management of incidents on the SRN, reduces delays in traffic and supports NH in performing key strategic maintenance and upgrade projects on the SRN. Airwave is currently the only mission-critical communications network available on a national scale that provides the above services and is the only method of radio communication supported by the UK Emergency Services for interoperation, which is required by National Highways role as a Category 2 Responder.