need of wireless communication

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March/April 2000 Vol. 63 No. 5

WIRELESSCOMMUNICATIONS:A MODERN

NECESSITYby Lester G. Finkle II

Imagine that you are sitting inafternoon rush-hour traffic that isextremely congested because of a"fender-bender" and the ensuing clean-up efforts. You will not be able to

pickup your child from the day-carecenter, and you need to let your spouseknow. You wish you had a wireless

telephone, but you do not have one because there is no wireless service inyour community. Impossible, you say.

Let's try another scenario. You arehaving car trouble and need to contactyour automobile club for assistance.Again, you are without a wireless

phone due to a lack of wirelesscoverage. Preposterous, you exclaim!
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government agency for its own use or are otherwise dedicated solely togovernmental use) and, therefore, areentitled to be within the rights of wayof state highways (as opposed to

interstate highways) free of charge.

FHWA has adopted the position thatwireless providers are private utilities(with facilities that are devotedexclusively to private use) and,therefore, are subject to Section 704 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996,which "establishes a comprehensiveframework for the exercise of

jurisdiction by state and local zoning

authorities over the construction,modification, and placement of facilities such as towers for cellular,

personal communications service(PCS) and specialized mobile radio(SMR) transmitters." In addition,Section 704 "prohibits any action thatwould discriminate between different

providers of personal wireless services"and also "prohibits any action thatwould ban altogether the construction,

modification, or placement of thesekinds of facilities in a particular area." 2Consequently, wireless providers may

be regulated according to 23 Code of Federal Regulations 1.23 (b) and (c)under the air space provisions, unlessstate statute defines wirelesscommunications as a public utility.

Wireless technology is the transmissionof your message via low-energy radiosignals to the closest antenna site,which then connects with the localtelephone network. Your message isthen delivered via fiber-optic cable to awired telephone or by radio signal toanother wireless phone.

Because wireless providers useindividual radio frequencies multiple


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times by dividing a service area intoseparate geographic zones, or cells,each cell requires its own radiotransmitter/receiver antenna to transfer the wireless call from the limits of the

present cell to the neighboring cell. Awireless tower requires generally

between 14 and 46 square meters (150and 500 square feet) depending on thenumber of antennas attached to thetower. The site contains the tower,which varies in height from 15 to 46meters, and an equipment cabinet, bothof which are placed on a concretefoundation within a fenced area. Theequipment in the cabinet must be

connected to a power source.

Wireless tower antennas requireminimal maintenance -- perhapsreadjusting the antennas once or twicea year. In fact, individual wirelessantennas do not need to be affixed to atower as they may be placed onhighway sign supports, light posts, andeven the roofs of buildings.

It is frustrating when you are travelingand your connection becomes distortedor terminates. This occurs because the

present cell site is having difficultysuccessfully transferring the call to thenearest cell site due to its distanceand/or elevation. If the nearest cell siteis too distant, the connection may even

be lost. Wireless coverage is only asgood as a provider's network of cellsites or its proximity to other providers'networks. Wireless providers identifymarkets, and then, they seek to

proliferate the market area with their cell sites. Of course, if the area hasnumerous private owners, the providersmust negotiate with each owner for theability to establish a cell site.Consequently, the wireless providersseek out owners with larger amounts of


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real estate in the hopes that multiplecell sites may be negotiated. Railroadrights of way and highways/roadwaysare an example of this situation. Thefederal government has recognized the

importance of wireless communicationsand has instructed its executivedepartments and agencies to facilitateaccess to its property for the purpose of siting antennas. 3

For states that do not legally definewireless communications as a publicutility, FHWA regulations 23 CFR 1.23(b) and (c) provide an avenue for reviewing/approving wireless tower

requests as air space leases or licenses.Paragraph (b) explains that "all real property, including air space, within theright-of-way boundaries of a projectshall be devoted exclusively to publichighway purposes." The state highwayagency is charged with "preservingsuch right of way free of all public and

private installations, facilities, or encroachments, except" for threesituations, one of which is air space.

Paragraph (c) states that "the temporaryor permanent occupancy or use of rightof way, including air space, for non-highway purposes ... within the

boundaries of the rights of way of federal-aid highways, may be approved

by the administrator, if he determinesthat such occupancy, use, or reservationis in the public interest and will notimpair the highway or interfere withthe free and safe flow of traffic

thereon."These regulations illustrate that air space use allows the operating highwayright of way to be used for non-highway purposes if FHWA or the statehighway agency makes a finding thatsuch use is in the interest of the publicand that the use will not interrupt or


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public utility, the master agreement process promotes public participationwhile allowing any and all interestedwireless providers to compete.California, New Jersey, and Ohio have

successfully established a wireless program using a master agreement. Themaster agreement may be styled in theform of either a lease or a license; thelicense appears to be the documentmost often used. Therefore, the title of the agreement will appear as "Master License Agreement" (MLA). Inaddition, once any and all interestedwireless providers have been given theopportunity to sign the MLA, a "Site

License Agreement" (SLA) will be prepared for each wireless site.

The MLA should contain (at aminimum) a description of the purposeof the wireless program; a descriptionof the purpose of the MLA and theSLA; use; term; rent structure (fair-market value rent predicated on thenumber of antennas and the area of thewireless site, whether urban or rural); a

description of the improvements andmode of construction; the responsibilityof the provider to arrange for utilityconnection and access; and all requiredinsurance, indemnifications, and

prohibited uses. There may beadditional provisions, depending oneach state's legal requirements, but thestate highway agency must define thelimitations sufficiently to protect theoverarching purpose of the highway

system -- the use by the traveling public. In addition, the fair-marketvalue rent schedule will vary accordingto each geographic area's market rents.The right-of-way section of each statehighway agency should be consulted todetermine the rent schedule and should

be involved in the processing


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wireless proposals.

Finally, the agency should encouragewireless providers to co-locate, whichwill limit the number of wireless sites,

while allowing more wireless providersthe opportunity to establish wirelessservice.

Proposals that entail the use of interstate system rights of way requireFHWA review and approval. Inaddition, depending on the statehighway agency's stewardshipagreement with FHWA, proposalsinvolving the other roads in the

National Highway System may alsorequire FHWA review and approval.FHWA review includes both rights of way and engineering, as well as safetyand/or bridge aspects depending on thelocation of the proposal. A wireless

proposal does not receive finalapproval until the state highway agencyand, if necessary, FHWA have signedthe environmental document(Categorical Exclusion). Prior toestablishing a wireless program, thestate highway agency and the FHWADivision Office in the state need tocreate licensing processes and sitingguidelines that will permit an effectiveand efficient wireless program.

The benefits of a wireless program areself-evident, and the public benefits inseveral ways. The wirelesscommunications needs of the public areserved; the fielding of some intelligent

transportation systems is facilitated;and future highway improvements arefunded by the additional incomereceived by the state highway agency.This is a win-win situation for the

public, state government, and for wireless providers, especially if all

parties involved work together to


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effectively communicate andcoordinate their efforts. It promotescompetition among the wireless

providers. In addition, a public wireless program incorporates the flexibility

granted by the TelecommunicationsAct of 1996 and satisfies the intent of the act.

Adapted From "Assessment of RuralITS Wireless CommunicationsSolutions"

by Qingyan Yang, Virginia P.Sisiopiku, James A. Arnold, Paul

Pisano, and Gary G. Nelson

Advanced Rural TransportationSystems (ARTS) intend to usedeveloping intelligent transportationsystems (ITS) technologies to improvethe safety and efficiency of ruralsurface transportation. Many rural ITSfunctions potentially require some typeof wireless communications support.However, available wirelesscommunications systems that currentlyserve urban areas may not be fullysuitable for application to rural areasdue to limitations in coverage,transmission rate, and so forth. Todesign for the desirable range of ARTSservices, it is necessary to review andevaluate the potential of wirelesscommunications systems andtechnologies within the ruralenvironment.

Rural Wireless Communications

FunctionsFive types of rural ITS wirelessfunctions are required to meet ITSneeds in rural areas:

Vehicle-to-vehicle wirelesscommunications are necessaryto support ITS for inter-vehicle


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collision avoidance, passingsafety, and warnings aboutslow-moving or stoppedvehicles.

Roadside-to-vehicle broadcast communications could be usedfor warnings about safetyhazards and for trafficadvisories (e.g., animals on theroad, collision or incidentahead, highway-rail crossing,work zone, weather conditions,changing speed limit, detour,local and attractioninformation).

Mobile wide-area wirelesscommunications provide the

potential for in-vehicleinformation systems, in-vehiclemayday function, interactiveroute guidance, en routewarning systems, fleetdispatching and routing,onboard information recordingand reporting, electronic

payment systems, onboardsafety monitoring, andemergency notification.

Fixed wide-area wirelesscommunications permit remoteroadside data collection andmonitoring, roadsideinformation displays,emergency fixed roadsideterminal notification, traveler and service information access,transit demand management,and interagency coordination.

Short-range wirelesscommunications supportintersection collision-avoidancecoordination, automated vehicleidentification, commercial


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vehicle operations (electronicclearance, roadside safetyinspection, weigh in motion,and automated vehicleidentification), and priority

signal control for transitvehicles and emergencyvehicles.

Emerging Wireless SystemsA number of developing wirelesscommunications systems andtechnologies may affect futuredeployment of rural wirelesstelecommunications infrastructures.Examples of emerging systems include:

Statewide Multiple-Agency WirelessNetwork DeploymentCurrently, more than 30 states are

proposing or developing a statewidewireless system shared by multipleagencies. Most of these systems useadvanced digital trunk radio systemsthat form a wireless mobilecommunications network. The fulldeployment of these statewide wirelesssystems is expected to satisfy the ruralITS wireless requirements for lawenforcement, emergency responseservice, and rural highway datacollection and management.

Third-Generation (3G) WirelessTechnologiesThe 3G wireless system refers to thenext generation of cellular technologies. The primary aim of 3Gtechnologies is global coverage for

speech and low-to-medium bit rate dataservices with the provision of high-bitrate services over a limited coveragearea. The prototype 3G system testingis currently ongoing. The powerful datacapability of the 3G system is expectedto benefit rural ITS wirelessapplications such as slow-scan or real-


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time video transmission.

Rural LMDS and WLL ServicesLocal Multipoint Distribution Service(LMDS) uses microwave signals in the

28-GHz spectrum to transmitinteractive voice, video, and datasignals within small cells of 3 to 16kilometers in diameter. It allowslicensed holders to control a range upto 1.3 GHz of wireless spectrum, whichcan carry digital data at speeds morethan 1 Gbps. LMDS promises awireless alternative to fiber and coaxialcables to deliver two-way video andhigh-speed data services in rural areas.

In addition, the concept of WirelessLocal Loop (WLL) aims at takingadvantage of wireless accesstechnologies to providetelecommunications connectionsinstead of wireline infrastructures.WLL systems have to prove that theyare at least as good as the services

provided by cables to carry and deliver voice, data, video, Internet access,multimedia, and high-speed data.

Deployment of LMDS and WLL inrural areas will provide an alternativewireless backbone infrastructure -- afeature that is crucial for rural ITSapplications.

Rural Satellite ServicesGenerally, the advantages of satellite-

based mobile communicationsnetworks include wide-area coverage,

network flexibility, compatibility withterrestrial existing networks, and terrainindependence. Three types of commercial satellite systems are under development:

Direct Broadcast Satellite(DBS) systems deliver cable-


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like television programmingdirectly from satellites.

Global Mobile SatelliteCommunications systems claim

to provide services such asinternational roaming; ruraltelephone service; cellular fill-in services; commercial vehicleservices; and maritime,aviation, and governmentservices.

Broadband Satellite Service(BSS) systems are intended to

provide flexible capacity on

demand for high-volumetelephony, video conferencing, broadcast video, and high-speedInternet data services. Most of the BSS system is still indevelopment and will not beoperational until 2001 at theearliest.

References

Synthesis of Highway Practice 224 ,Transportation Research Board,Washington, D.C.

Fact Sheet, Federal CommunicationsCommission, Washington, D.C., April 23,1996.

Federal Register , Vol. 61, No. 62, March 29,1996.

California's Master License Agreement.

Lester G. Finkle II has been the right-of-way


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officer and civil rights specialist in FHWA'sConnecticut Division Office since August 1999. For the previous three years, he managed the CaliforniaDepartment of Transportation's (Caltrans') wireless

program as a realty specialist in FHWA's CaliforniaDivision Office by coordinating the review andapproval of all wireless proposals submitted toFHWA. He worked for more than four years as aright-of-way negotiator with the New JerseyDepartment of Transportation and joined FHWA asa realty specialist trainee in 1996. He has a

bachelor's degree from Rutgers University.

Articles & Departments The Quest for Quality: Pennsylvania's MeyersdaleBypass ProjectBasics of Concrete BarriersLinking Habitats and Reducing RoadkillHydraulics Testing of Wilson Bridge DesignsBeware of Invasive SpeciesWhy Asset Management is More CriticallyImportant Than Ever BeforeRoadways and the Land: The Landscape Architect'sRoleDeveloping an "Operations Vision"Safety Leadership Today for a Safer TomorrowTRANSIMS Is Coming!A Safe Place to RestWireless Communications: A Modern Necessity

National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week --April 3-7

TFHRC Home | FHWA Home | Feedback

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