CPRR; As per your post on T.O, give the radio a chance. Ditch the rubber ducky for a moment and if you have the metal whip try it extended to 18".
If you or a friend have a magnet mount antenna plop it on the top of the car (or fridge) and hook it up.

It could be your location as anywhere in the city (and inside your house too) the radio could have strong interfering radio signals overlosding it's input.

Make sure you know whether the Attn is on or off (if you have such.

If a railfan friend's radio works well and yours not while in the same area, oh well. But remember radios can cause interference with each other but usually as birdies (interference at certain freqs). If you still have the instruction manual for your radio check it's birdie list.

Good luck