HFU HF Underground
General Category => General Radio Discussion => Topic started by: Davep on December 21, 2018, 1340 UTC
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Old tech now. Sign up for text messages. It had to happen sooner or later.
https://www.wavy.com/traffic/vdot-to-phase-out-highway-advisement-radio-in-hampton-roads/1666812616
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So VDOT has taken the rest of the system that operated on 530 and 1610 in other parts of the state offline previously (at least according to the article)...the 1680 system was the last remaining TIS network in Virginia (run by VDOT that is).
VDOT maintains active licenses for 530 kHz, 1610 kHz and 1620 kHz in various parts of the state as well as temporary base/fixed transmitters for those frequencies. I presume those licenses are kept active as part of disaster/emergency preparedness.
Another piece of history. The bright side is 1680 kHz will be that much clearer once the network goes QRT?
VDOT has a pretty awesome radio network overall. Their 45/47 MHz hybrid simplex and repeater network covers the state and they use the VHF Project 25 STARS network in conjunction with Virginia State Police for supervisors and highway assistance trucks. The highway assistance trucks in the Richmond area all have CB equipment installed in addition to the 45/47 MHz radios and STARS radios. CBs are pretty common equipment in a lot of the highway/salt trucks as well. Pretty impressive radio capability (as it should be). A shame that they're decommissioning the AM TIS networks.
See: https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?frn=0003847092&os=0&s=fr (https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?frn=0003847092&os=0&s=fr)
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Back up with an improved signal here at the house! According to the news it resumed 2 days after the "final" broadcast and that's a mystery to me because I only noticed it today March 3. That's odd because I often dx the X band at 430 am going to work.
Anyway " VDOT does not want people using cell phones" and " people got upset" You go , upset people!
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Glad VDOT is keeping the Hampton Roads area network on 1680 kHz AM alive.
Probably means the other VDOT operated TIS stations on 530 kHz, 1610 kHz and 1620 kHz aren't going anywhere anytime soon either. All the licenses are still active anyway, including WQOW385 (the license for the VDOT 1680 kHz TIS network).