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It sounds more like $500 million for upgrading the entire network, which isn't entirely unreasonable. It could have been cheaper, but there are some factors tha
by jltsiren 3y ago
It sounds more like $500 million for upgrading the entire network, which isn't entirely unreasonable. It could have been cheaper, but there are some factors that make it more expensive:
* The network is in the US, where infrastructure is always more expensive.
* It's for a government entity, and the US is known for its inefficient government spending.
* They may have to buy American instead of shopping around for the best deal. Encrypted government radio networks are state-of-the-art technology from the 90s. There are plenty of established systems to choose from if you are willing to trust them.
- woodruffw 3y agoTo the best of my knowledge, there is no requirement that the NYPD only procures American-made equipment. Replacing a radio network is expensive, but $500M is eye-poppingly large. Given the NYPD’s track record of financial infidelity, it isn’t unreasonable to suspect a decent amount of graft at play here.
- jltsiren 3y agoHong Kong budgeted HK$ 948 million for a comparable TETRA network in 2001. That's $120 million nominal and $210 million adjusted for inflation. Compared to that, $500 million doesn't sound entirely unreasonable. It's hard to find more recent numbers, because these days everyone is transitioning their government radio networks to use commercial infrastructure.
- woodruffw 3y ago2.5x what a larger municipality paid for a system that was newer at the time seems pretty unreasonable to me. It’s not like the NYPD is field testing something cutting-edge here.