1 of 1- Scorpio42
- Member
Offline
Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Found an old Official Ontario Road map with a listing of AM and FM radio stations in Ontario from the early 1980's. Note there wasn't as many FM radio stations in Toronto and Ottawa back then and the were more AM stations with tons of low-power CBC relay transmitters in smaller communities. I didn't know that CFRU Guelph was listed as an AM station on 820! Things have sure changed over the years!
- RadioActive
- Moderator
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Here's a similar guide, this time from the U.S. It claims to highlight all the rock stations you'd find on your route down south. It's from 1976. There's a tiny section about Canada at the very bottom. It lists CKOC as being from Toronto.
(You can read an enlarged version, by clicking on the pic.) But you don't need to do that to read my favourite part of the thing. It's the warning at the bottom that says "DO NOT ATTEMPT TO READ WHILE DRIVING."
- Radiowiz
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Scorpio42 wrote:
Found an old Official Ontario Road map with a listing of AM and FM radio stations in Ontario from the early 1980's.
I understand CHRY signed on in the late 80's, so they're not listed.
Is that Canadian guide intentionally leaving out community radio?
Or was it printed just before CKLN signed on @ 88.1 FM in Toronto?
Where is CIUT?
Last edited by Radiowiz (December 17, 2020 6:31 pm)
RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person.
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.
- markow202
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Speaking of radio signs, from time to time, and some still exist primarily in cottage country ive seen...goverment highway road signs randomly placed of a local frequency.
For example, Highway 400 north near Mactier you'll see a white highway road sign on the shoulder showing a tower icon and "103.3 FM"
Who decided to place those there the station or Ministry/Government?
- RadioAaron
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
didn't know that CFRU Guelph was listed as an AM station on 820! Things have sure changed over the years!
This is great! I vaguely remember having a copy. The CFRU AM listing would refer to their carrier current days -- same for the AM listing for CKCU Ottawa. Not terribly useful for the car traveller, unless they're lodging at a campus dorm over the road-trip!
- paterson1
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
I know I have also noticed the blue signs scattered in more rural parts of Ontario with station call letters and frequency at the bottom under the larger font for community or region name. My understand was that the station needed to make the call to be included. The signs are showing local stations available, not everything you can actually pick up in the area.
- RadioAaron
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Similarly, it's only been a few years since I've seen a local radio guide in a hotel room's information booklet. Those were often comically wrong, and obviously put together by someone on hotel staff.
Now there's a 50/50 chance of a hotel room even having a radio at all.
- Scorpio42
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Found an old Official Ontario Road map with a listing of AM and FM radio stations in Ontario from the early 1980's.
I understand CHRY signed on in the late 80's, so they're not listed.
Is that Canadian guide intentionally leaving out community radio?
Or was it printed just before CKLN signed on @ 88.1 FM in Toronto?
Where is CIUT?
This map was from the early 1980's and CIUT-FM didn't become an FM station at 89.5 until 1987 according to Wikipedia and the decision from the CRTC, so that's why CIUT wasn't listed.
- •
Thread Starter- Scorpio42
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
didn't know that CFRU Guelph was listed as an AM station on 820! Things have sure changed over the years!
This is great! I vaguely remember having a copy. The CFRU AM listing would refer to their carrier current days -- same for the AM listing for CKCU Ottawa. Not terribly useful for the car traveller, unless they're lodging at a campus dorm over the road-trip!
Some carrier current campus very low-power AM radio stations are only heard around the campus were added to the list possibly for visitors or radio enthusiasts. Both Carleton University's CKCU 670 AM and 93.1 FM is listed but I had noticed that University of Ottawa's CFUO (now CHUO-FM 89.1) also operated on AM 670 in Ottawa isn't listed!
History of CKCU-FM
History of CHUO-FM
- •
Thread Starter- fybush
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
I'm curious about that CFOT 1150 listing for Sarnia. There's absolutely nothing I can find about that station, even at broadcasting-history.ca, which is usually comprehensive even for defunct facilities.
Was it a campus station? Carrier current?
- Fitz
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
I'm curious about that CFOT 1150 listing for Sarnia. There's absolutely nothing I can find about that station, even at broadcasting-history.ca, which is usually comprehensive even for defunct facilities.
Was it a campus station? Carrier current?
Google search brought this up for me but when I click on the entry I see nothing. However when I searched CFOT Weather radio I was able to find the second reference which I have also copied below:
CFGX-FM - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org › wiki › CFGX-FM
[list=1]
[*]
[*]
[/list]
CFGX-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts at 99.9 FM in Sarnia, Ontario. ... Walpole Island · CFRZ-FM 98.3; Defunct: CFOT 1150. Weatheradio Canada. XJV492 162.4 (Sarnia-Oil Springs); VAZ533 162.475 (Windsor-Leamington) ...
CFOT[url=,_Ontario]Sarnia[/url]1150 AMAn English-language low-power AM travellers radio station owned by Global Communications Limited. CFOT's Last licence renewal with the CRTC was in 1990.[7]
Last edited by Fitz (December 18, 2020 6:28 am)
Cool Airchecks and More:
- MJ Vancouver
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
I'm curious about that CFOT 1150 listing for Sarnia. There's absolutely nothing I can find about that station, even at broadcasting-history.ca, which is usually comprehensive even for defunct facilities.
Was it a campus station? Carrier current?Google search brought this up for me but when I click on the entry I see nothing. However when I searched CFOT Weather radio I was able to find the second reference which I have also copied below:
CFGX-FM - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org › wiki › CFGX-FM
[list=1]
[*]
[*]
[/list]
CFGX-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts at 99.9 FM in Sarnia, Ontario. ... Walpole Island · CFRZ-FM 98.3; Defunct: CFOT 1150. Weatheradio Canada. XJV492 162.4 (Sarnia-Oil Springs); VAZ533 162.475 (Windsor-Leamington) ...
CFOT[url=,_Ontario]Sarnia[/url]1150 AMAn English-language low-power AM travellers radio station owned by Global Communications Limited. CFOT's Last licence renewal with the CRTC was in 1990.[7]
Global Communications Limited being the original owner of the Global Television Network before CanWest bought them. So, technically this was Global’s first radio station, long before GNR 640.
- MJ Vancouver
- Member
Offline
Re: Radio lists on Ontario Official Road Maps
Speaking of radio signs, from time to time, and some still exist primarily in cottage country ive seen...goverment highway road signs randomly placed of a local frequency.
For example, Highway 400 north near Mactier you'll see a white highway road sign on the shoulder showing a tower icon and "103.3 FM"
Who decided to place those there the station or Ministry/Government?
I've driven across Canada and I've seen these outside Ontario as well, except in other provinces there's a tad more detail given. Notably, shortly after entering Saskatchewan coming from Manitoba, there's a sign advising of CBK 540 - the big 50,000 watt CBC signal from Watrous. They even use the call letters on the sign, which looks to be relatively new; you don't see CBC call letters advertised very often anymore. BC also has these signs in smaller communities. Some of the older signs show the call letters of the local CBC relay (e.g. CBUP 860 in Merritt), the new signs just say CBC Radio One.
Some of the signs in Ontario are woefully out of date. There's one on Highway 17 outside Sault Ste. Marie that lists AM 920 as one of the local stations available. CKCY hasn't broadcast since 1992.
The only time I've ever seen a highway sign in Southern Ontario that advertised a radio station was the old 1280 AM in Toronto which was originally a Pearson Airport info station; there was an overhead sign on the 427 approching the 401 from the south that mentioned AM 1280. That station, of course later became business news CFBN; I recall the sign was still there in 2008 around the time CFBN shut down.
In New York State the only highway sign I've seen mentioning radio was one outside Buffalo on I-90 with lights on top, advising drivers to tune into 1630 AM (I think) if the lights are flashing for important road updates.
Last edited by MJ Vancouver (December 18, 2020 6:36 pm)