As of November 1, 2008, the Second Region Net (2RN) of the ARRL National Traffic System (NTS) expanded its reach, providing regular network nodes for Canadian provinces in Eastern Canada.

In a joint announcement last week, NTS Eastern Area Chair Marcia Forde, KW1U, and Bill Thompson, W2MTA, NTS Second Region Net (2RN) Manager for Cycles 2 and 3, invited those Canadian radio amateurs who handle traffic to participate in Second Region Net operations as the Eastern Canada Net (ECN) is no longer active. According to Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC), the ECN, a CW Net, handled traffic for Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Price Edward Island and Newfoundland into the US for transcontinental transmission.

"This expansion of 2RN operations is intended to allow Section Nets in the eastern provinces of Canada to have outlet to Eastern Area Net operations and to allow inbound traffic to flow to those provinces of Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes," Thompson said. "This is much the same way as the more-western provinces in Canada currently interface with the NTS RN7 (Seventh Region Net) and TEN (Tenth Region Net) nets."

Canadian operators are invited to participate in the 2RN operations in addition to those of their provincial NTS Section Nets. The Second Region Net operates four times daily on the 75 and 80 meter bands (3.925 and 3.576 MHz) in accordance with the NTS Four Cycle timetable using Cycles 2, 3 and 4.