{"id":720962,"date":"2025-02-27T06:28:18","date_gmt":"2025-02-27T14:28:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=blog&p=720962"},"modified":"2025-04-24T08:02:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T15:02:08","slug":"illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing","title":{"rendered":"Q&A: Illinois\u2019s Next Generation 911 Maps Emergencies for Faster Response"},"author":671,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","transcript_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[],"tags":[491992,30072,491972,491982,484172],"industry":[],"esri-blog-category":[478872],"esri_blog_department":[478242],"class_list":["post-720962","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-change-maker","tag-emergency-response","tag-ng911","tag-psap","tag-qa","esri-blog-category-communication","esri_blog_department-public-safety"],"acf":{"video_source":"","video_start":"","video_stop":"","short_description":"Learn how Illinois used GIS technology to modernize its 911 system across 117 emergency centers, improving response times and school safety.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Cindy Barbera-Brelle, Illinois's statewide 911 administrator, leads a 911 modernization effort<\/a> rallying more than 100 911 systems to streamline processes and improve data quality for a Next Generation 911 (NG911) system.\r\n\r\nThe project\u2019s main focus over its nearly 10-year timeline has been on creating an up-to-date state map. Barbera-Brelle uses a coordinated enterprise approach with geographic information system (GIS<\/a>) technology to ensure accurate addresses\u2014a functional element of NG911. GIS maps and data provide essential details about roads, addresses, and jurisdictional boundaries for accurate emergency call routing and location validation.\r\n\r\nThanks to this effort, Illinois also contributed data to the National Address Database<\/a> for the first time. The database helps improve traffic safety as well as services such as package delivery.\r\n\r\nThis complex project required a great deal of collaboration and data integration. Barbera-Brelle reflected on the progress and achievements in Illinois, the change management approaches that have worked, and how this effort is now being expanded to address school safety.\r\n\r\nThis interview has been edited and condensed.<\/em>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Q: What is the status of the NG911 effort in Illinois and what milestones have you achieved?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle:<\/strong> We've made great progress, but it's been a long and winding road. We've transitioned 114 answering points to NG911, with less than 12 to go. The last 12 have been a bit of a struggle. We're doing integrated text as a part of the project, allowing 911 users to send text messages to public safety answering points [PSAPs].\r\n\r\nNG911 really makes a difference in response times. Geospatial routing is the key component of that, making sure the call is routed to the right PSAP. That\u2019s been a huge project, and we\u2019re nearly finished. Making sure 911 calls are handled and routed quickly is huge for everybody.\r\n

Q: With so many counties involved, how did you share the vision and get each one to contribute data?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle: <\/strong>Early on, I attended an Illinois GIS Association [ILGISA] meeting [see sidebar]. I needed experts who were passionate about GIS to provide direction and guidance. I needed to understand the state of GIS data across the state.\r\n\r\nWe\u2019re in a diverse state. In the north, we have Chicago and the collar counties<\/a> that surround the city that make up more than 65 percent of our population. As you move farther south, we have a lot of counties with less than 50,000 people and some with fewer than 20,000 people. Larger counties have GIS staff, but the smaller ones tend to rely on contractors for this work.\r\n\r\nI presented the challenges of meeting the legislative requirement of NG911 at an ILGISA meeting. The president of the association approached me after the talk and offered ILGISA as a resource. A committee was formed to develop standards and policy documentation. We\u2019ve had some excellent players that know GIS, asked the right questions, and have involved their peers."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Center","content":"

Building a Coalition of Advisers and Student Workers<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nThe effort to bring Next Generation 911 (NG911) to Illinois is being led by Cindy Barbera-Brelle, Illinois Statewide 911 administrator. One of the first things she did was to engage experts at the Illinois GIS Association (ILGISA)<\/a>. They formed a NG911 advisory board, and its members have been instrumental in setting data standards, creating workflows, and checking data quality.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nPeter Schoenfield, a former GIS analyst for Lake County, Illinois, and now a senior GIS manager for the Western Illinois GIS Center, helped tackle the complexity of street addressing to accurately record and verify each location. He worked on implementing the NG911 GIS Data Model<\/a> standard from the National Emergency Number Association.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nEric Creighton, GIS analyst with the City of St. Charles, Illinois, was the president of ILGISA at the time and in the beginning served as the primary data reviewer.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nNow, the GIS Center at Western Illinois University, led by Chad Sperry, has taken a larger role for data quality checks. Sperry oversees college students recruited for paid internships reviewing and improving data from across the state.\r\n\r\n\u00a0<\/strong>","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Q: How do you keep track of all the data?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle:<\/strong> We\u2019ve used ArcGIS Hub and ArcGIS Dashboards from the start. We\u2019ve made enhancements to the tools all along. Early on, the dashboard we created showed what data layers have been submitted and whether the data passed our quality checks. Now, we\u2019re more concerned with the timeliness of the data. We\u2019re working on an update to the dashboard to see when data is submitted and how old the data is.\r\n\r\nWe have some PSAPs that haven\u2019t submitted data since 2023. I have to stay on them and remind them about their liability exposure and the response they need to provide to their citizens. If the data is wrong and a responder goes to a wrong location\u2014adding minutes to a response\u2014it could mean life or death."},{"acf_fc_layout":"gallery","gallery_images":[724772,724752,724762,720972]},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Q: What approaches have worked to tackle the complexity and the many moving parts of this project?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle:<\/strong> It\u2019s all about communicating. At the start, I did a weekly call with each of the seven regions. Now it\u2019s monthly. I invite anyone who\u2019s involved and share a slide deck, so everyone knows what\u2019s going on.\r\n\r\nWe have regular discussions about data gaps and overlaps. We talk about concerns. Oftentimes there\u2019s a fair amount of problem-solving that happens on our calls because others have experienced a challenge and worked through it.\r\n\r\nYou kind of shake your head about some of the data gaps that we need to resolve to support geospatial routing [see the call routing sidebar]. My resource team will narrow down a particular gap and identify as best they can who it belongs to. They make a map, and I send it out to the 911 system manager and the data maintainer, whether it\u2019s a vendor or a local employee. It's all about making sure we\u2019re providing the best level of service for the citizens and the first responders.\r\n

Q: You\u2019ve now begun work on mapping the interior of schools and access points to improve school safety. How did this extension of the NG911 work come about?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle: <\/strong>The 911 system manager in Fulton County has worked to map schools. They had an incident with a cardiac arrest and\u2014relying on interior maps\u2014the first responders were able to go to the closest entrance, saving minutes. With the success of that effort, we started to have conversations.\r\n\r\nThere has been some legislation to map schools, but it was an unfunded mandate. I administer an NG911 grant program, and I expanded that to include school mapping. We put together a standards-based guidance document, and I gave out $5 million in grants last year. I\u2019d like to see school maps become one of the layers that PSAPs maintain and make available to first responders.\r\n

Q: As complete NG911 coverage nears for Illinois, what do you reflect upon about your success in implementing it?<\/strong><\/h3>\r\nBarbera-Brelle: <\/strong>Nothing goes as fast as I think it should. Probably one of the most positive pieces has been the work with Esri since the beginning, and I\u2019m not just saying that because this is an Esri conversation. We\u2019ve had the same programmer since the beginning and that continuity is just huge for success. He knows us. We\u2019ve had planning sessions and face-to-face meetings over the years.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nLearn more about how GIS enables a quick response before, during, and after a 911 call<\/a>."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Center","content":"

Shifting to Geospatial Call Routing<\/strong><\/h2>\r\nNext Generation 911 (NG911) has been promoted at the national level, but it\u2019s up to each state to tackle the move to internet-protocol hardware and associated software enhancements.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nIllinois has embraced the shift to geospatial call routing, using GIS and emergency caller location instead of the legacy Master Street Address Guide (MSAG) to route 911 calls. The MSAG is a tabular database that ties a phone number to an address. When it was introduced decades ago, the MSAG was a great leap forward. It became so reliable that 911 telecommunicators could first ask landline callers, \"What is your emergency?\"\u2014the location was already known. However, the MSAG is not used to route wireless 911 calls. Instead, they are routed to PSAPs based on which cell tower and sector receive the calls. Today, most phones are mobile, and because wireless 911 are not routed geospatially, telecommunicators also have to ask, \"Where is your emergency?\"\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nAfter much work and coordination, Illinois will answer that time-consuming and often confusing question by geospatially routing and delivering 911 calls to the most appropriate PSAP. To make the move to geospatial routing, boundaries and address data must be accurate and synchronized so that 911 calls are correctly delivered to PSAPs. This high-quality GIS data also helps dispatchers assign the right responders and route them precisely, improving location accuracy and response times.\r\n\r\n ","snippet":""}],"references":null},"yoast_head":"\nQ&A: Illinois\u2019s Next Generation 911 Maps Emergencies for Faster Response<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how Illinois used GIS to modernize its 911 system across 117 emergency centers, improving response times and school safety.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Q&A: Illinois\u2019s Next Generation 911 Maps Emergencies for Faster Response\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn how Illinois used GIS to modernize its 911 system across 117 emergency centers, improving response times and school safety.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Esri\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/esrigis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-24T15:02:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2024\/12\/AdobeStock_980566201-911-call-center_826.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Esri\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n\t \"@graph\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing\",\n\t \"name\": \"Q&A: Illinois\u2019s Next Generation 911 Maps Emergencies for Faster Response\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website\"\n\t },\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2025-02-27T14:28:18+00:00\",\n\t \"dateModified\": \"2025-04-24T15:02:08+00:00\",\n\t \"description\": \"Learn how Illinois used GIS to modernize its 911 system across 117 emergency centers, improving response times and school safety.\",\n\t \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing#breadcrumb\"\n\t },\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/blog\/illinois-ng911-geospatial-routing#breadcrumb\",\n\t \"itemListElement\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 1,\n\t \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 2,\n\t \"name\": \"Q&A: Illinois\u2019s Next Generation 911 Maps Emergencies for Faster Response\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#website\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"Esri\",\n\t \"description\": \"Esri Newsroom\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t \"target\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t },\n\t \"query-input\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t }\n\t }\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/8ad23580b2658589de4ea5107d75cb52\",\n\t \"name\": \"Matt Ball\",\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Author-photo-2024-768x768.jpg\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/app\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Author-photo-2024-768x768.jpg\",\n\t \"caption\": \"Matt Ball\"\n\t },\n\t \"description\": \"Matt Ball is the editor of the Esri Blog and writes about applications of geospatial technology for all its departments. 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