The availibility of internet "on the road"

The major chains (Flying J, T/A, etc.) have wifi available (for a price) at most of their locations. There are also a number of independant truck stops that have wifi, both user pay and free, available as well. Coffee shops are another good source, and I have often been able to connect for free when parked next to hotels. There are even some highway rest stops that have wifi available. I also have a smart phone with a data plan so I can connect anywhere else whenever I want.

The only place that I would really like to see wifi available, but, in my experience, it's currently virtually non-existant, is at shippers/receivers.

 

Truckstops have WiFi for a fee. The problem is you're tethered to them and can't get on-line anywhere else. I have an AT&T wireless card. Most carriers give you a discount if you have your wireless and cell with them.

 

Do you use a Canadian plan in the states? Is it expensive? My wireless goes to Rogers in Canada and charges by the byte. Expensive!!! I have a couple of friends that have an American and Canadian cell plan and use my address for their U.S. cell plans.

 

Expensive? It only hurts when I try to sit down.

Unfortunately, we have some of the most expensive cell rates in the world. There's no unlimited data, or long-distance plans either, or at least none that I could find. I've been thinking about getting a U.S.-based phone myself.

 

You can get a Flying J wifi subscription for under $15 and it'll work in Canada and the U.S.

 

I've been known to do this too!


You can't beat free!

 

Sometimes in moments of desperation I use Flying J by the day in Canada. I just don't like being tethered to one place.

 

I'm regional dedicated so I'm only out 2 or 3 nights a week . I have a regular run from KY to Ontario . On my first night out I stay at the Flying J in London , ON . Depending how fast I get unloaded I'll either spend the next night back at London or Toledo or Beaverdam OH . I have another run that may be a couple of times a week and I stop at the Flying J at Walton , KY on that run . I get my money's worth out of Flying J Wifi . Most McDonald's have free Wifi but I don't know how strong the signal is .

 

I used to rely soley on truckstop wi-fi....but was always finding that whenever I had lots of spare time, a reset, waiting on a load, etc....half the time the only truckstop in town either had NO wi-fi or BROKEN wi-fi! Or, I'd be unable to get a good parking spot near the antenna. Or, there'd be some dummy in the lot with a "BIG RADIO" who'd boot me offline every time he keyed up. There's a lot of things that can interfere with wi-fi, unless you're right on top of the antenna.

The final straw was when I used my debit card to buy some time at a truckstop in Holbrook Arizona (land of sand and crystal meth)....and later that night tried to buy dinner & was told my card was invalid. Some meth-head hacker probably in one of the ratty little trailer parks nearby had somehow gotten my debit card number from the wi-fi system and tried to buy $3000 dollars worth of auto parts in Paraguay about 30 minutes after I got online. I can thank Bank of America for truly offering good fraud protection with their debit cards....they caught it & didn't allow the transaction to go through. They sent me a new card with a new number. But then I was stuck 3 weeks on the road with no debit card, relying on company advances (something I never do).

Lesson learned- never, EVER enter your credit card numbers to buy wi-fi or products online, don't do online banking, when hooked up to a Hotspot. A few days later, I bought a Sprint wireless internet card and have NEVER BEEN HAPPIER .

I have high-speed service near most any sizeable city, except up in North & South Dakota and Montana. I have high-speed in places I wouldn't expect, like random cow towns in Kansas. And I have dial-up speed in some of the most remote, oddball places, like the time we broke down in the middle of nowhere, smack between Butte and Missoula, Montana....I had ROAMING dial-up speed with one "bar" and I still was able to send email .

It took me a while to break down & shell out the money for the wireless card, but I can say it's well worth the investment for me.