Got a question...

Yes mine has. It wants to take the shortest rte sometimes. Like yesterday bobtailing it had me going on a posted rd. Thank goodness I was bobtailing, still could of gotten a ticket if caught

 

Copilot (I believe) that is used by Peoplenet gets no where near close to either my terminal or the shipper I go to every day. Terminal tries to take me down residential roads to a destination that is not even close to the street name. Shipper is simply off by several buildings.

In both cases it's dead simple to know it's wrong, but the fact two of my three daily stops are is a concern to me.

 

No Atlas is worth the paper it's made of in the city. I've found that the Co-Pilot app is pretty good in town as far as posted streets. Still have to be paying attention to signs, if you get stuck somewhere because you were not paying attention, you deserve whatever you wind up getting.

 

Mine too on occasion has tried to lead me astray.
I am I guess an old timer as I am 55 years old and I use a trucking gps and atlas back up when I don't think the gps is routing me correctly.
More than once I have had to drive right passed the gps selected route and let it recalculate till it got on the right route.
I also use my atlas all the time for route planing which would be hard to do with a gps.
Nothing like laying it all out with an atlas and saying I'm here and I have six different stops so this looks like the best way to run the route.

 

A GPS is a tool with a specific function. You wouldn't want to loosen lugnuts with a monkey-wrench, but in a pinch, a monkey wrench has it's value. Likewise, a GPS is a nice basic guide, but a normal atlas is a good backup. I personally have a car GPS, a laminated truck atlas and google maps on both my phone and a tablet (which is only good if you have cell service or downloaded a specific section of the route)...and I also have a good set of eyes if any of those fail me...plus the customer's phone number if all else fails. I use to have a Garmin truck GPS, even when regularly updated, it still was wrong occasionally. (It says my house is on the opposite side of my road). So, as the old saying goes, "the only thing you can trust is the nut between the seat and the steering wheel".

 

The only problem I have had in the bigger city's like New York City is the buildings are so tall it blocks the gps signal and you lose your directions and it keeps recalculating.
Also in New York City there are a lot of tunnels and you completely lose your gps in there.
When you come out of the tunnel the pace is so fast you don't have time for the gps to recalculate and put you on the right track.
At that point it's up to your instincts to pick the right route and hope for the best.

 

You don't want to treat a GPS like a chauffeur that drives you around. You need to know where you are going before you get there or there will be problems.

 

I currently have a RM TND 720 now and have used Both a RM 710 and the Garmin 770. (Big screens for failing eyes)

Even though I check for updates weekly. I think she gets confused (yes, she... High maintenance, and can't find the mute button to save my life! LOL) depending on where I am at. I have gone the same route multiple times during a week and I don't always get the same results. Sometimes, it's from traffic that it tries to route around. Other times I think it's just .03 miles shorter, so of course it's going to try that route.

I have an Atlas as well... I can say honestly that I picked it up twice since I bought it...

A GPS is a tool. Just like an atlas, or directions on your qualcomm, or calling the customer and figuring out how to get there or looking at your atlas... All tools are only as good as the brain trying to make sense and how to use them. I would rather glance at a screen than have a large print binder slung across my steering wheel cause I don't know or can't remember which way to turn. Trip planning BEFORE you leave is ALWAYS a good thing...

Technology is/was created to help us. If you don't want to use it, fine by me... But it's there for those of us that will continue to use it. So personally, I will continue to find ways to make my day easier... But my common sense and reading comprehension skills will always take center stage when I'm trying to keep myself out of trouble and not go down a wrong path... Oh and before I forget, I'm not perfect... I've just been lucky enough (knock on my thick skull) to get myself out of the trouble that I have been in so far.