Public safety LTE and 5G investment to pass $6.3bn, shaping fire sector communications
Iain Hoey
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Public safety broadband investment and fire sector impact
Annual global spending on LTE and 5G New Radio (NR) – based public safety broadband infrastructure and devices is forecast to exceed $6.3 billion by the end of 2028, with fire and rescue services among the agencies expected to transition away from legacy radio systems.
SNS Telecom & IT stated that the growth is being driven by migration from land mobile radio (LMR) systems, including TETRA and Tetrapol, to 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) broadband technology across multiple national markets.
Western and Northern European countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Finland and Sweden, are moving ahead with plans to migrate all public safety users, including fire services, to nationwide mission-critical 3GPP networks between 2028 and 2031.
South Korea completed its transition earlier, attributed to the absence of a digital LMR network with nationwide coverage.
National public safety networks and emergency response operations
Multiple national-scale public safety broadband deployments are operational or moving into the delivery phase, directly affecting emergency response agencies.
Saudi Arabia’s $8.7 billion mission-critical broadband network is being delivered for defence, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, forming part of a nationwide platform that will support emergency communications.
The Hong Kong Police Force’s $250 million 5G-based NGCS project was cited as a comparable national-scale initiative in a smaller market.
Other major programmes referenced include the United States’ FirstNet, South Korea’s Safe-Net, Great Britain’s Emergency Services Network (ESN), France’s RRF, Sweden’s SWEN, Finland’s VIRVE 2, New Zealand’s Public Safety Network (PSN), Japan’s PSMS, Ireland’s new mission-critical communications system, Spain’s SIRDEE broadband network and Italy’s public safety LTE and 5G service.
These networks are designed to support mission-critical voice, data and video services used during emergency response operations.
Network capabilities relevant to fire and rescue services
3GPP-compliant mission-critical (MCX) services are described as a foundational element of nationwide public safety broadband networks, with recent contracts awarded for interoperability gateways and standards-based IWF technology.
Other development priorities include in-building coverage enhancement, 5G NR sidelink, hybrid LMR-broadband terminals and other alternatives for off-network communications, rapidly deployable network assets and satellite direct-to-device connectivity.
Integration of NG911, live video, geolocation services, AI analytics and situational awareness platforms is also cited as part of the technical scope.
SNS Telecom & IT estimated that annual investments reached $5 billion in 2025 and forecast market growth at a compound annual growth rate of about 8% over the next three years, reaching more than $6.3 billion by the end of 2028.