Over the road drivers: What comms are used now days?

[88E30M50]

For those that make a living on the road, what comm radios are in use now days? Is CB still the main tool of the road or is it now GMRS? If GMRS, is there a standard channel, like channel 19 from the old days? Or, is it still the CB on channel 19 that road info is passed along?

I do a trip back and forth between Indy and North Carolina several times a year and have run into traffic situations that Google maps just makes worse. I'm guessing that most professional drivers know about that stuff miles before you get to whatever is going on.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I'm guessing that most professional drivers know about that stuff miles before you get to whatever is going on.

You'd think so, but from the number of 18 wheelers that seem to be lost tourists around me, I don't think that's the case anymore.

 

[patience0830]

Fewer and fewer guys carry a radio at all. Like the internet, the garbage, perversion, and filth was so pervasive, it wasn't good for my attitude. The available information wasn't worth listening to the crap. If I need road info, Google maps shows me the slowdowns but not necessarily the legal routes around them.

 

[88E30M50]

Dang, that's sad to hear. I have a CB from back when I had a Jeep and didn't bother connecting it to anything for those exact reasons you mention Patience. I was hoping that there was a channel out there that was a bit more professional than it apparently all is.

On the bright side, it's good to know that I've not been missing out on a great source of road condition info.

 

[duanewade]

Dang, that's sad to hear. I have a CB from back when I had a Jeep and didn't bother connecting it to anything for those exact reasons you mention Patience. I was hoping that there was a channel out there that was a bit more professional than it apparently all is.

On the bright side, it's good to know that I've not been missing out on a great source of road condition info.

I drive US 30 every day to and from work and from the antenna that I see hanging on the mirrors I'd say the good ole CB is much alive and still used. I have two 30+ year old SSB CBs that I know work but haven't had them in a vehicle for at least 20 years.

 

[Ingomike]

I drive US 30 every day to and from work and from the antenna that I see hanging on the mirrors I'd say the good ole CB is much alive and still used. I have two 30+ year old SSB CBs that I know work but haven't had them in a vehicle for at least 20 years.

Funny you say this. I was just ready to post the when I’m on the interstate system I rarely see antennas any more. I see drivers on headsets talking on the phone…

 

[marvin02]

There are truck oriented nav apps that plan routes based on your vehicle type. I use Tom Tom for nav and they have a version for trucks. The truck version is $20/month.



If you're looking for a way to listen in on truck drivers that's no help.

 

[2tonic]

We still ride on channel 19.
There's still plenty of jackwagons and radio Rambo's..... But much less than ten years ago.
New class of CDL A drivers can barely drive their own cars, are apparently oblivious to the dangers of pedaling 80,000 pounds amongst equally oblivious 4 wheelers, and have no idea what a CB is.
They make for some very trying days.

I use a GPS navigator made for semi's that receives traffic updates from my phone, in real time, and suggests reroutes

 

[Cameramonkey]

There are truck oriented nav apps that plan routes based on your vehicle type. I use Tom Tom for nav and they have a version for trucks. The truck version is $20/month.

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If you're looking for a way to listen in on truck drivers that's no help.

And given the number of torn up light poles on the side roads within a mile of the airport, (and the plethora of new-ish warehouses) I'd say truckers are cheaping out and paying for cars and not getting the appropriate routes. They are CONSTANTLY getting sent down side roads they have no business being on. With tight turns they cant make.

I dont know how many times Ive said out loud (not like he can hear me) "Dude, you're gonna be in a world of hurt soon. You shouldnt have gone down that road. " We are talking intersections with light poles within 2' of the curb. Maybe if the trailer had steering tires on them like a ladder truck, they could make the turn.

 

[duanewade]

My dad was an OTR driver from the early 50's up to about '68 or '69 when his shoulders couldn't do it anymore. I used to ride with him sometimes during the summer and his GPS was a Rand McNally atlas and experience of places he'd been before. I'd see him on occasion back up the semi for a mile because he came to a corner he could not make.

 

[boogieman]

I manage a fleet of 18 tucks that average close to 60,000 miles a week. Out of the 18 only 3 of them run CB radios anymore. They all say that the only thing on them anymore is just the constant BS with people trying to start crap or people just being asshats. Most of them have truck specific GPS units that will give them a lot of info.

 

[Ark]

I would be surprised if the current gen of CDLs even speaks English to use a radio.

 

[Cameramonkey]

I would be surprised if the current gen of CDLs even speaks English to use a radio.

Many dont. I talked to a guy who owned a warehouse for freight distribution. He had some crazy stories. MANY drivers who had to put their cell on speaker and use their wife or somebody else as a translator. One driver was local and every time he would show up there, his wife would drive over and translate for him in person.

 

[2tonic]

Funny you say this. I was just ready to post the when I’m on the interstate system I rarely see antennas any more. I see drivers on headsets talking on the phone…

Most newer fleet trucks (Freightshaker, Volvo, Navistar) have built-in antennas hidden in the roof of the sleeper.
You'll see antennas on Pete's and K-Whoppers, or on rigs with BIG radios.
You'll never see them on Western Stars, cause you can't tear your eyes away from that art deco front grill.

eta..newer CB radios can connect to your Bluetooth headset, so you don't have to "pump handle" a mic.

 

[2tonic]

I would be surprised if the current gen of CDLs even speaks English to use a radio.

Sad, but true.

 

[2tonic]

Many dont. I talked to a guy who owned a warehouse for freight distribution. He had some crazy stories. MANY drivers who had to put their cell on speaker and use their wife or somebody else as a translator. One driver was local and every time he would show up there, his wife would drive over and translate for him in person.

See it every day.
When you see 'em tumble out of their tractors at the truck stop, it looks like a U.N. meeting.