Re: Radio help...

The short answer is yes. We looked at a potential site that would be line of sight into the Toltec Gorge area. Some options that could be coupled with this is moving the Cumbres repeater to the top of Cumbres Peak--that might help some but may not be cost-effective for what is gained. Also, we looked at siting a repeater on San Antonio Peak. There is a State of New Mexico site there (along with a lot of others) that has commercial power available. It would also provide some benefits, but the coverage from the Antonito depot antenna is actually pretty good on the east end of the line. The San Antonio site still does not solve the "Toltec" problem according to our research. Coupled with a repeater in the Toltec area, it could solve that problem, but that's two new repeaters and that, of course, costs money.
The railroad also needs to decide if they want sufficient coverage to use handheld radios for all communication, or if they would accept use of "mobile" radios on trains (which have them), motorcars, and trucks. The higher transmit wattage and much more efficient antennas on mobile units may be an effective way to improve coverage in some marginal areas where handhelds just don't "cut it" right now. Even mobiles won't solve the problem around Toltec, but that may be a spot where the railroad works around less than optimum coverage until the resources ($) are available. And yes, even the Class I railroads have that problem of "dead spots" in mountainous areas like ours. The UP fights one within a few miles of my house all the time.