Re: The Railroads blew it big time!
Author: Shortline Sammie
Date: 03-11-2014 - 12:27
Another Hogger Wrote:
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> What has it cost all the railroads in the US to go
> narrow band and soon digital?
> 100? 200 Million? For want? a tiny part of the
> radio band that is mostly no good to anyone else.
>
> Amtrak for one, spending huge sums for all new
> radios (which don't work as good as the old GE
> MPA's and MPD's)
> They could have spent the new radio money on
> fixing up rolling stock!
> The Freight's could have also spent the new radio
> money on rolling stock or upgrading lines
> They should have lobbied the FCC to get an
> exemption and saved all the hundreds of millions
> I for one don't like the idea of going on the
> ground in the middle of the Needles sub and the
> engine radio is disabled and you have to rely on a
> expensive junk packset trying to call the
> dispatcher for help and all they hear is digital
> gargle!
We shortlines could have bought a LOT of ties and ballast for what we had to pay to replace those old bulletproof SPECTRA Clean Cab radios and repeaters and still have a MUCH better sounding / working system.
Dick Samuels
Oregon Pacific Railroad