Montgomery PD Goes High-Tech With Nixle

We here at Patch love communication. It’s kind of what we do, and we’re always pushing for more of it.

That’s why I was so interested to hear that the has started using Nixle. What’s that, you ask? Nixle is a service that sends emails and texts from government organizations to their constituents, at no charge.

Nixle started in 2007 through a partnership with the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, and bills itself as the only secure and authenticated communications system of its type in the country. Nixle is now partners with nine other national agencies, and 4,600 public safety organizations now use it, according to the website.

Others in the Fox Valley, including Geneva and North Aurora police departments, already use it.

The Montgomery Police Department launched its Nixle account on July 6, and so far they’ve only used it once, to ask for volunteers for Montgomery Fest. But Chief Daniel Meyers believes this is going to greatly improve communication between the department and the residents of the village.

“Anyone can sign up for this, and it gives us the opportunity to give up-to-the-minute information faster,” he said.

What kind of information? Nixle users will get traffic and crime alerts, of course, but they’ll also get info on community events, parking bans, and interruptions in village services. Meyers said when traffic is routed around the , which kicked off this week, residents will learn about it on Nixle.

Signing up is pretty simple—I did it in about five minutes, and I got an email right away. The alerts I get can be targeted right to my neighborhood. And Nixle won’t send text alerts to my phone unless I give them permission. (Although they did send one to tell me the service is available.)

I’m looking forward to seeing how well this works. Meyers said he’s hoping for a couple hundred people to sign up over the next year. I think if the department uses it right, and sends timely and appropriate alerts out without overloading us with information, Meyers will get his wish.

For more information on Nixle, check out their frequently asked questions page. Sign up to get Montgomery police alerts at the company’s website.