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I'd think that after more than five years of scanning around here, I'd have a handle on all of this stuff. But apparently all this time, I've been misunderstanding something about how the pieces of the KC trunked system fit together, and what the various "real" independent agencies are. My excuse is that I've been living in Seattle until now, and have mostly been ignoring the non-Seattle agencies...

I thought that all of the Eastside agencies using the EPSCA system were dispatched from one place. But I guess that was wrong. For example, the City of Bothell, which has TGs on the EPSCA system, shows a communication center on their website. So how exactly does this work? Who is dispatched by EPSCA, and who has their own dispatch centers connected into the system? Is there an up-to-date list somewhere?

This is made more confusing to me by the fact that some cities truly have their own PDs, and some contract with the county, but they're still marked as city PD units. So when we talk about Bellevue PD, they're really Bellevue PD, but when we talk about Woodinville PD, they're really KCPD. Are the FDs like this too? Is there really just one big KCFD, which "relabels" fire units for different cities under contract, or do all of the cities really have their own FDs?

And what happens in a city like Bothell, where the city actually straddles a county line? Do they use EPSCA for the entire city, or does the Snohomish county side use something else?

Thanks.

No agency is dispatched by EPSCA. EPSCA provides their "airtime" They are free to use whoever they want for dispatch service, as well as radio repair.


Woodinville PD is a contract city for KCSO. KCSO provides Police Services including dispatch. At one time, there were agencies that only used KCSO for dispatch, but had their own officers.

There are King County "users" that contract with Bellevue and ValleyCom for Dispatch service.

King County's Radio Shop provides services to several other agencies that have EPSCA for "airtime", Bellevue for "dispatch".

It's about costs and contracting.

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The City of Bothell operates its own communications center, using EPSCA proivided talkgroups.

The City has its own Centracom radios which are connected by network to the EPSCA controller interface.

Bothell provides dispatch services to the City of Lake Forest Park as well.

The 800 system is used throughout the city, although the Sno county side reception and coverage has some serious issues.

Bothell has five talkgroups on the system, and Lake Forest Park has two or three, although I believe one is dead now.