The message from Deschutes County about the new digital 911 radio system for law enforcement is now “progress.” But should anybody believe they will get it working right?

The $5 million-plus system was sold in 2016 to Deschutes County commissioners as providing “remarkable coverage compared to what’s in place today.” Since it launched, it has been remarkably unreliable. It was so faulty the union representing Bend Police officers filed a complaint in December with the state — essentially saying it was making officers’ workplace unsafe. Dropped transmissions, garbles and wild variations in volume level don’t belong in public-safety radio.

The union’s complaint got attention from county 911, the county commissioners that oversee it, contractor Harris Corp. and the public. Harris and the county made improvements and changes. Most recently, a temporary tower was put up on Overturf Butte to improve coverage, particularly on Bend’s west side. There is still work being done to improve Bend police radios. The county says improvements may be needed to boost signals in schools, hospitals and other buildings. Harris is also bringing in a team next week, the county says, to diagnose “a recent, although sporadic, situation where calls to dispatch from various law enforcement agencies have not gone through.”

The number of complaints filed by law enforcement or dispatchers about the system had been averaging about 50 a week earlier this year. From June 1 to June 28 in the Bend area — where the majority of the problems have been — it was about the same. Users “pushed to talk” 549,636 times and there were 185 reported problems.

That puts the percentage of problem transmissions at less than 1 percent. If that’s the kind of reliability you are getting with your cellphone, you’d probably be satisfied. When an officer is involved in an incident in a school, it’s a different matter.

County commissioners have said they are committed to ensuring the radio system works reliably. That’s reassuring. But they must rely on county staff and Harris to get the job done. We ask again, should anybody buy they will do it?

County staff recommended approval of a contract with Harris that left the county with few options if problems occurred. County 911 staff did not alert commissioners to problems when the system came online last summer. County staff recommended a final payment to Harris last year, even though the system was experiencing problems. County 911 staff chose to move forward with a plan without a tower on Overturf Butte that seems a necessity to get adequate coverage on Bend’s west side.

911 has new leadership, and commissioners are working to hire more technical expertise for the agency. Let’s hope it will be enough.