Just curious, as I'm planning a trip from Chicago to LA, was all the traffic analog or was NXDN mixed in?
Are Amtrak long distance trains using NXDN?
- Thread starter BruceMichaels
- Start date
It will be analog for road operations.
All analog as mentioned above. Here is a resonably good source of info for Amtrak trains here (by route) ...
You will find the Southwest Chief and other routes listed.
On Track On Line - Amtrak Radio Frequencies
Trains Community - On Track On Line provides information about Rail Travel and the hobbies of railroading and trains.
www.on-track-on-line.com
For the most part Amtrak is still using analogue channels for voice communications on the Northeast Corridor and DC to Miami. I'm not too sure where Amtrak or other Class 1 Railroads are using IDAS NXDN yet. I do know that SEPTA REGIONAL RAIL has replaced their Motorolas with ICOMs around the same time that the Silver Vs went into service, so they're ready to switch over.
Thanks all! I'll still pack my NX-210 just in case!
Have Fun with your NX-210.
Bruce, other than the NX 210, what else do you listen with?
I got one of those BOOFWENG UV-32. It works very well on the analog train freqs. Was using an older VHF XTS2500.
I really forgot where, but I that there is an NS yard somewhere in Carolinas using NXDN on AAR Ch 75 161.235. Maybe in North Carolina because I remember the Mainline goes through the yard instead around. I'm not sure whether train crews and yard masters or NS Police. But I'm sure I've seen NXDN being used bs NS.
Most cases of NXDN use are primarily in shop channels. I believe Roanoke VA has one in use on NXDN as well. Haven't had a chance to really decode it off the Pokey East feed yet since there is no NXDN decoding in SDRTrunk right now, but they are adding it now.
While few railroads currently use NXDN, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) adopted NXDN as the digital railroad voice radio platform standard over a decade ago. Nearly all railroad voice radios that the Class 1 railroads have acquired since then are NXDN-capable. Converting railroad voice communications to digital has become a lower priority since Positive Train Control (PTC) communications allow a lot of non-voice information to be transferred to train crews via that medium, drastically reducing the amount of voice communications between train crews with the Dispatcher. Same with track maintenance crews communicating with the Dispatcher. Total railroad voice communications via the VHF voice channels is down probably 50% or more since the pre-PTC days.
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