Radio Planning Considerations in TETRA to LTE Migration for PPDR Systems: A Radioelectric Coverage Case Study

Transitioning a Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) network to a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) network in public protection and disaster relief (PPDR) systems is a path to providing future services requiring high radio interface throughput and allowing broadband PPDR (BB-PPDR) radio communications. Users of TETRA networks are currently considering how to deploy a BB-PPDR network in the coming years. This study offers several radio planning considerations in TETRA to LTE migration for such networks. The conclusions are obtained from a case study in which both measurements and radioelectric coverage simulations were carried out for the real scenario of the Murcia Region, Spain, for both TETRA and LTE systems. The proposed considerations can help PPDR agencies efficiently estimate the cost of converting a TETRA network to an LTE network. Uniquely in this study, the total area is divided into geographical areas of interest that are defined as administrative divisions (region, municipal areas, etc.). The analysis was carried out using a radio planning tool based on a geographic information system and the measurements have been used to tune the propagation models. According to the real scenario considered, the number of sites needed in the LTE network—for a specific quality of service (90% for the whole region and 85% for municipal areas)—is a factor of 2.4 higher than for TETRA network.