In a move I don't remember seeing since the 1980s, the last few years have seen some Canadian AM stations moving to another AM frequency. What brought this to front of mind is my discovery today of a CRTC application from just before Christmas for CJSL Estevan, Saskatchewan, to switch from 1280 KHz to 1150 KHz. New transmitter site, too. But no increase in the current 10,000 watts of power.
Although it is still up in the air as to whether it is worth the effort to change frequencies, CFCW-790 Camrose-Edmonton apparently still has a "live" permit to move to 840. No, they aren't waiting around for an FM frequency. They made that very clear from the outset that FM would not serve their critically important rural audience.
There was also a lot of recent interest in Montreal in getting a better frequency among some of the AM stations there, as a domino effect from the CBC abandoning two AM clear channels.
Of course, we have also seen some new AM stations being proposed, but mostly in crowded FM spectrum markets where the applicant makes it quite clear that they want to be on FM, but figure that an AM license is better than no license at all.
Which leaves me with the question: with all the AM to FM flips that we have seen in Western Canada, and the huge number of available AM frequencies that have resulted, what frequency jockeying would be worth the time and money to make it happen for the station(s) involved?
I know I'm not the only one that feels that CKNW's movement from 980 to 730 would help a lot with coverage issues they are currently suffering. Personally, I find it hard to say whether that change would be good enough to provide an adequate signal inside the concrete walls with steel rebars that dominate the Greater Vancouver landscape. If I was a betting man, I'd be guessing that Corus would rather hold out for some way to get CKNW on a Mount Seymour 100,000 watt FM stick, which would really provide that urban coverage, even if it meant losing their present outlying coverage in places like Alert Bay and Hope. If they still really wanted Fraser Valley coverage, they could always resurrect the three AM frequencies abandoned in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Hope: 1270, 850 and 1240. And make them repeaters of CKNW-FM. The Island has some abandoned frequencies, too.
That doesn't necessarily mean killing either of the two existing FMs that Corus owns in Vancouver. Corus management may just have decided to wait out the CRTC until they allow more than 2 commonly-owned FMs in major markets, a move that has been predicted for years by investment analysts covering Corus stock.
In Edmonton, Corus could be playing the same waiting game for relaxation of FM common ownership rules. On the other hand, I have not heard the complaints about CHED's AM signals inside concrete walls that I do about CKNW's in Vancouver. The real issue here is holes in coverage outside of Edmonton, especially at night, much like CFCW experiences. A move to 880 by CHED would give them a great non-directional day pattern, but would still leave them with precious little signal to the South at night. This far North, stations run night pattern in the winter for most of their top billing periods: AM and PM Drive.
Of course, although we have all assumed it is a dead issue, Corus may yet convince the CRTC that they deserve equal treatment with the CBC in terms of getting nested FM repeaters in urban areas.
Back to the question at hand: as I see it, the most sensible AM frequency change in Western Canada would be CISL from 650 to 600. Thanks to the upcoming ownership change, CISL has very likely missed their window of opportunity, since there are already two published applications to the CRTC for 600 KHz.
Like CISL, Team 1040 has a day pattern that does not adequately cover Victoria. In 1040's case, there is a need to protect Port Angeles from co-channel interference of 1050 in Seattle. But only in the daytime, because 1050 was originally a daytime-only station.
Truth be told though, 600 is not a silver bullet either, as they also have a Null, day and night, towards the Island. But the Null is very tight as part of a three tower symmetrical pattern that protects Saskatoon. Draw a straight line from Saskatoon through (600's transmitter site in) Richmond and you end up just South of Nanaimo; Victoria still gets a solid signal.
And, of course, Rogers management must have thought about moving to 600 a couple of years back when they were tearing their hair out over sunrise and sunset interference from a daytime blowtorch (50,000 watts, most of it going North) just South of Portland on 1130.