Has Anything Changed?

Sounds like stray RF and grounding issues were the culprit..

 

Not really for traffic specifically, but for people in your immediate vicinity, best you'll get is 2m VHF 146.52. I rarely hear anyone on it though, but can sometimes get someone to answer if I throw out a call. Otherwise, you could look up repeaters in the cities you're traveling through, but that's not practical unless you're regularly in the same locations.

 

A CB radio is still the best tool for communicating local information on the highway. Ham equipment is not useful to a trucker for that purpose.

IMO, CB channel 19 still prevails in most of the country, and 17 for the rest; at least for those with radios turned on and tuned in.

 

Passed trucks in the last 2 years rolling on the interstate, and they had their phones on the wheel like that while driving. Seen one dude with a IPad on the dash watching a movie or ballgame or something….