70 replies to this topic

[Sean1989]

On Beulah Road, Chesterfield County, VA, USA : 

Road work crews have flaggers/sign holders that are using FRS channels that announce when they are releasing their traffic and announcing the last vehicle so / before the other can release their traffic.

 

Another location is on Genito Road at Otterdale Road.  Same thing happens here.  

 

Unknown PL / "code" for both locations due to the fact that I am driving and won't look down at the display

I will watch for it at a stoplight

 

 

My Bearcat BCD 396T will display the PL tone when someone keys up on that frequency/channel using PL tone.   

 

Uniden BCD-396T

Uniden BCT-15X

Uniden BC-895XLT 

Radio Shack Pro 92 and Pro 97 - seldom used.

ADI AT-600 Dual band HT 2m/440

TYT MD-380

Icom ID880-H FM/D-STAR

Icom IC4008A FRS HT (2) 

[oldtech]

Pretty common across the country I'll bet. I recently drove from Punta Gorda Florida to Dixon Illinois. Had the radio scanning with carrier squelch all the while, and heard a LOT of construction crews using FRS radios. Just my impression, but I think every construction zone I came across had people using FRS radios, at least where there were workers visible.

 

I also heard some fellow travelers using FRS to communicate while 'caravanning'. That came in pretty helpful a couple times when lanes were blocked due to construction/accidents. I was able to get into the best lane well ahead of time since they were ahead of me and I overheard their complaints. Which segues into CB...

 

I monitored CB channels 9 and 19 on a separate radio, in order to hopefully be forewarned of traffic issues... but I never heard a peep the entire trip. I thought maybe I had a problem with the radio or antenna, but when I got to Illinois I had a friend key up his CB, and it sounded fine. I guess CB is truly dead. As an aside, I monitor 9 and 19 at home as well, and very rarely hear any traffic.

 

I did also hear a lot of GMRS traffic on the trip. Mostly it was agricultural related, some of it was just chewing the fat. Interestingly, the only 'proper' GMRS traffic I heard was in Northern Georgia, where two guys discussing the weather and their plans to replace some coax gave their call signs properly. Otherwise the only call signs I heard were from a few repeaters automatically ID'ing.

 

And finally, I also monitored the MURS channels, mostly out of simple curiosity. Passing through the countryside, I heard a lot of data traffic in heavy agricultural areas, 'cotton country' and 'corn country'. In metro areas there was some light traffic from 'BigBox' stores.

[quarterwave]

I've heard that alot. Nothing to prevent it, they can use FRS, however, any legit business should get an assigned frequency and license in part 90. Most of the time, it's just a business taking the cheap way out. 

 

There was an industrial supplier near me that finally got off FRS due to people breaking the cheap radios, and the fact they were on channel 1 code 1...genius...and always had "interference". LOL

 

Added: I also ran into a situation with a Highway Dept that has a VHF repeater and good radios (Narrowband VHF), but in their flagging operations the radios were setup for 2 watts to conserve battery, and being narrow, range was crap. In fact, they could not hear each other even though they could see each other sometimes. One of the guys brought in his kids FRS radios and they could actually hear each other. I told them to tell their boss to buy a couple of Trbo radios for flagging and program them for 5 watts, and they can still have the main repeater channel in there too. 

[WRCC719]

I also hear schools on FRS for their afterschool program. Are these normal use on frs?

[Hans]

I also hear schools on FRS for their afterschool program. Are these normal use on frs?

 

Yes, for my AO. I'm across the street from a charter school and there are one or two more a couple of blocks away. They use the radios throughout the day as well.

 

I hear lots of FRS/GMRS traffic throughout the week; of all kinds.

[n4gix]

Same here in Hammond, IN. There are quite a number of schools both public and private who use FRS radios.

[WRAF213]

Particularly with schools, there's not a whole lot of money to go around to buy and license business radios. A school fairly close to me started popping up on Baofeng channels; I talked with the school's administration who confirmed it was an after-school program, and administration forced them to go back to 'more expensive' FRS radios. The after-school program wasn't run by the school, so they didn't have access to the Part 90 license and radios of the school. Many of the Amazon listings for the BF-888S and rebrands of such state they work out of the box, legally, without a license; someone in the after-school program probably took the bait and bought a six-pack for less than the cost of a PL-capable FRS radio.

 

Around here, most schools have a Part 90 license, usually through the district. They aren't on itinerant channels, and each school appears to use two channels. Non-district functions don't get to use those radios, and are responsible for their own communications.

 

One construction crews took the Baofeng issue a step further and picked a frequency within the Amateur band to do their stuff (including traffic control). Most of the crew members had UV-5Rs with hand mics. It's been several months since I've heard them; I was able to find where they were, but not which construction company was on-site.

 

A different project in that same area is currently using FRS 2 in carrier-squelch (their LXT118s don't do PL/DPL), and from their location they should get out several miles. How they don't get any interference is beyond me.

[WQYW694]

hello my name is steve from Kingston ny  I am a flagger and we use frs radio ch 1 my job get the cheep radios my question is I have my grms license can I use frs freq

[WRAF213]

Yep. When using FRS, you're not operating under your GMRS license unless you choose to, as long as your radio is FRS-compliant.

[Ian]

hello my name is steve from Kingston ny  I am a flagger and we use frs radio ch 1 my job get the cheep radios my question is I have my grms license can I use frs freq

Welcome to the community, WQYW694.  

[Elkhunter521]

Hi Steve, As long as you are using a FRS radio, including the GMRS / FRS combination radios that were re classified last year to FRS, you do not need a license and you can use them. If you take your own GMRS radio (not a bubble pack )to work, you would legally have to use your call sign.
At that point, everyone with a beef about your company's use of this channel would be looking for you.
Not worth it.

Oh, Welcome to GMRS.

Keith T.

[quarterwave]

Hi Steve, As long as you are using a FRS radio, including the GMRS / FRS combination radios that were re classified last year to FRS, you do not need a license and you can use them. If you take your own GMRS radio (not a bubble pack )to work, you would legally have to use your call sign.
At that point, everyone with a beef about your company's use of this channel would be looking for you.
Not worth it.

Oh, Welcome to GMRS.

Keith T.

 

Which brings up a good topic...

 

If there are now radios sold that have the original FRS low side channels (Like Ch 1 462.5625) that were always half watt, and are now 2 watts. Plus they now have the GMRS mains to use at 2 watts... It's really hard to tell who is using FRS for business (which is technically ok, but businesses should take the high road and buy real radios), and who is using GMRS radios that can run on 5 watts for these channels, illegally. How are we going to know? We're not. Now I'm not saying anyone but the diehards like us here will think of this and jump on the chance to ambiguously use GMRS radios at 5 watts under the guise of FRS just to get full power, but you never know. 

 

BTW - is anyone making the new radios with 2w on FRS yet? I haven't really checked myself. 

[Hans]

BTW - is anyone making the new radios with 2w on FRS yet? I haven't really checked myself. 

 

There are a few china types that have gotten recent grants but the details look sketchy, as usual. IIRC, Motorola re-submitted some of their current bubble packs for certification under the changes. Did they actually change the wattage on those channels? I can't recall but I doubt it.

[Hans]

Now I'm not saying anyone but the diehards like us here will think of this and jump on the chance to ambiguously use GMRS radios at 5 watts under the guise of FRS just to get full power, but you never know.

 

Many were doing that all along. I don't think that the rule changes changed much in practice. Occasionally, you could see when they forgot to (or just didn't care to/couldn't) change the radios to narrow band. I rarely heard anyone giving call signs on any FRS frequencies before and don't hear it all that much now.

[Downs]

 Many of the Amazon listings for the BF-888S and rebrands of such state they work out of the box, legally, without a license; someone in the after-school program probably took the bait and bought a six-pack for less than the cost of a PL-capable FRS radio.

 

I've got a stack of 888s on the table in my garage.  For 12 dollars why not?  Anywho they are perfectly capable of doing both CTCSS and DCS tones.  Just gotta program them via computer since it's just a simple radio with a volume and channel knob. Same cable that does all the other Kenwood port radios will do it as well. 

[BoxCar]

I talked to Tracy Simmons at the FCC Gettysburg and he stated there is nothing in the rules about commercial users on FRS while using them for flagging operations.

 

As far as getting a 90.35 license for flagging operations the BILT coordinators are very loathe about doling out nationwide licenses. Why nationwide? Your choices are either a fixed radius site-based, county wide, state wide or national. As flagging operations most often fall into the temporary category of being at a location less than a year they also run into the issue of other users on the same channel with higher powered mobiles or base stations. Low-power FRS just fills the bill for what they are doing.

[fra1]

I hear flaggers all the time on FRS.  I hear Walmart and Academy Sports on FRS; also after school children pick up, Last week I heard 2 sets of caravaner's on the interstate, one was a woman who cursed like a sailor.   I hear a metal working shop on GMRS 7, an auto body repair shop on MURS.

When did truckers quit using CB's? What are they using now?

 

[Hans]

I talked to Tracy Simmons at the FCC Gettysburg and he stated there is nothing in the rules about commercial users on FRS while using them for flagging operations.

 

With all due respect, it was completely unnecessary to even ask the FCC about this since it is spelled out in plain English in Part 95. Not only that, the answer given (as related here) wasn't completely correct. There IS something in the rules about it... "business activities."

 

https://www.law.corn.../text/47/95.503

 

(Emphasis added by me.)

 

§ 95.503 Definitions, FRS.

Family Radio Service (FRS). A short-distance two-way voice communication service, with limited data applications, between low power hand-held radios, for facilitating individual, family, group, recreational and business activities.

FRS unit. A transceiver for use in the FRS.

[Corey]

I am still not sure why these posts keep appearing in GMRS groups. It is and has been legal for business to use FRS channels... People dont read the rules but claim to know them all the time. I see so much disinformation on the internet regarding the part 95 rules and some of the GMRS groups on facebook are the worst. If you try to correct the admins they block you for pointing out the truth...

[marcspaz]

Taking the lack of understanding of the rules out of the picture for a second... I think it's being discussed in GMRS groups because of channel sharing with FRS.  I also think there is a lot of confusion due to the name "Family Radio Service".  The name implies that it is for use by families, not businesses. 

 

Lets be honest... most people live by the concept of "when all else fails, read the directions."  If purpose and rules are occasionally misinterpreted by the people trying to understand by reading them... you can imagine that people who don't, would be exponentially more confused.

 

Just a thought anyway.