The invention is directed to a communications method for a vehicle consist comprising a lead powered vehicle, one or more spaced-apart intermediate remote powered vehicles, and a last remote powered vehicle. The method comprises transmitting an outbound message from the lead powered vehicle; at each of the intermediate remote powered vehicles, receiving and storing the outbound message, waiting a first time from an end of the outbound message as received at the intermediate remote powered vehicle and then retransmitting the outbound message, wherein the first time is based on a position, within the vehicle consist, of the intermediate remote powered vehicle that received the outbound message and the number of intermediate remote powered vehicles between the intermediate remote powered vehicle that received the outbound message and the lead powered vehicle; at the last remote powered vehicle, receiving the outbound message as retransmitted by one of the intermediate remote powered vehicle, waiting a second time from an end of the outbound message as retransmitted, and then transmitting an inbound message responsive to the outbound message, wherein the intermediate remote powered vehicles transmit the outbound message before transmitting an inbound reply message responsive to the outbound message; at each of the intermediate remote powered vehicles, storing a received inbound message, appending a local reply message to the received inbound message to form a new inbound message and transmitting the new inbound message; receiving the new inbound message at the lead powered vehicle, wherein the new inbound message comprises a response to the outbound message from each of the intermediate powered vehicles and the last remote powered vehicle; at the lead powered vehicle, determining whether a reply was received from each of the intermediate remote powered vehicles and the last remote powered vehicle, and in the event a reply was not received from one or more of the intermediate remote powered vehicles and the last remote powered vehicle transmitting the outbound message again.