Remote Signalling

At a recent club discussion on additions to the signalling system, various methods of control were mentioned. All of the ideas involved a considerable amount of cables and trunking that amounted to nearly three-quarters of the total cost of the installation.
One method that was not discussed – it was in fact an afterthought – was the idea of remote operation by radio control. It would seem that RC could have a number of advantages, although overall cost may not be significantly different. Signal heads, regardless of type, could be self-contained and removable, thus minimising the risk of vandalism or attack by vermin etc, plus of course much reduced exposure to weather. Being self-contained only small rechargeable batteries would be required as power supply.
My query is; has anyone used or experimented with, or even thought about such a method of control? Food for thought, anyone?

433MHz radio would seem to be the answer to this. The TX and RX modules are readily available at low cost and typically have a range of about 300m. I know nothing about railway signaling but use these modules (built into a solution from a commercial vendor) for remote control of clay pigeon traps. The cable free solution is a real boon to having to run 100's of metres of cable across muddy fields. It would need someone with good electronics skills to convert the raw modules into a solution though.