TTC in Colorado NXDN

The Transportation technology center (TTC) in Pueblo CO has apparently switched the VHF Ops to NXDN. As I drove thru the area today I found almost all of the VHF channels operating in NXDN.

Freqs included:
160.770
160.815
160.350
160.980
161.070
160.320
161.205
161.040
160.875

There are a couple other Freqs listed in the Database but I didn't hear any activity on them, analog or digital.

Could you tell if it sounded like IDAS or Nexedge?

It sounded like what other things that I knew to be NXDN did on an analog radio. I don't have any experience with IDAS but from what I have heard they are pretty similar.

Being the AAR facility I would be shocked if it weren't NXDN.

IDAS and NexEdge are both NXDN. There are some very slight variations between the Icom NXDN (iDAS) and the Kenwood NXDN (NexEdge)
The big differences between the two really shows up in trunking. Since this doesn't sound like a trunking system, it's unlikely it'd make much of a difference.

mmckenna said:

IDAS and NexEdge are both NXDN. There are some very slight variations between the Icom NXDN (iDAS) and the Kenwood NXDN (NexEdge)
The big differences between the two really shows up in trunking. Since this doesn't sound like a trunking system, it's unlikely it'd make much of a difference.

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Hmmm, so you think they are using NexEdge digital via conventional simplex?

Well, OP said it was NXDN. No way to really know if they are Icom radios or Kenwood radios.

Those look like AAR frequencies, so likely Conventional NXDN. Not sure if they allow trunking on there.

mmckenna said:

Well, OP said it was NXDN. No way to really know if they are Icom radios or Kenwood radios.

Those look like AAR frequencies, so likely Conventional NXDN. Not sure if they allow trunking on there.

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So do Icom and Kenwood radios interoperate in Digital Conventional mode?

natedawg1604 said:

So do Icom and Kenwood radios interoperate in Digital Conventional mode?

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Only very narrow, 6.25KHz, Icom does not give the option for 12.5KHz NXDN, where as Kenwood does.

Assuming NXDN trunking uses some sort of data channel I am going to presume these were NXDN conventional as there was no constant data channel.

Depends on the trunking system used.

Kenwood "NexEdge" trunking has dedicate or non-dedicated control channels. I've got a 5 channel system and I have it set up for dedicated control channel. The CC runs 24 hours a day, then rotates to another repeater at 0100 hours.

Icom iDAS trunking will do a "home channel" type function similar to LTR.

I suspect you were hearing conventional NXDN. It'd have to be a hell of a lot of users to need a trunking system with 9 channel pairs.

As for what Kayn1n32008 said,
Kenwood NXDN will do:
12.5KHz wide channels, 9600KBs known in Kenwood programming as "NXDN Narrow"
6.25KHz wide channels, 4800KBs known in Kenwood programming as "NXDN Very Narrow".

Icom originally only did 6.25KHz NXDN. Not sure if that has changed.

I know that Icom and Kenwood have shared trunking formats, you can get some Kenwood radios with Icom trunking protocol and some Icom radios with Kenwood protocol. Unfortunately for me, Icom never got into the 800MHz market, so I've never been able to try any of their iDAS radios on my system.

NXDN Conventional. With them now running it, it really isnt that far off on the rest of the rail system. They are the techno guys in rail industry are they not?

milf said:

NXDN Conventional. With them now running it, it really isnt that far off on the rest of the rail system. They are the techno guys in rail industry are they not?

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No doubt they are the technology guys but they aren't the $$$$ guys. With the massive spend on PTC not even complete yet, the deployment of NXDN might be pushed to a back-burner until they have fully absorbed the cost of PTC. Since PTC was a regulatory/legal requirement, it's really not an investment and you can't monetize those funds back as ROI.

TTC NXDN

Recently attended a class there. They are using Kenwood radios. It does appear by listening to the digital data streams that there are at least 2 control channels, 161.295 & 160.305 transmitting a constant data stream. I didn't have a way to hear any actual voice traffic unfortunately, hopefully the TRX-1 comes online soon.

Their TRS is up now at RR:

https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=9910

And at ElPasoCountyScan:

https://elpasocountyscan.blogspot.com/p/transportation-technology-center-pueblo.html

I think the SERTC instructors also use this system. I was out there a few years back for a multi day training on Bakken crude derailment response.

Based on the notes about students and classroom from the blog link, I would have to guess that TG 9 would be the SERTC folks.