Truckers GPS

That is the advertisement, but, not completely accurate. The information in your gps may be one or more years old, is not regularly updated, and has some inaccuracies.

They are a good tool to add to your bag, as long as you use it as one of several tools, ie: maps, road signs, and directions from shipper, receiver, and dispatch. The "truck GPS" is better than the regular GPS but will still lead you into trouble. Use it with caution.

 

I have used the second generation of a Tom/Tom. It is NOT truck, hazard mat formated. It has served me well. Took a little time to figure out the sign it was leading you into non truck/hazmat roads.. It is spot on the mileages between points. It is good for preplanning routes. Nothing is 100 precent. I got a Cobra GPS for christmas. I sent it back. Spent 468 dollars for a truck/hazmat ready GPS. It couldn't find my own home on an US hwy. I would recommend not buying a cobra. It maps or very very outdated. YOU still need to use a map, phone the shipper/reciever to verfiy route. Utumatly you are responsible is you wind up on the wrong route. It can become very expensive. Good Luck. If in doubt Call.

 

old fashioned , road maps and maps the state gives out on restricted routes , I had microsoft maps on the computer and printed out copys of the way i was going and then put it into a binder for reference later , often I would call the customer and ask for recieving if I needed more direct directions on coming in , and always start I have delivery for you in a semi , this way they know I cannot come down ordinary streets .

 

One thing when calling in for directions; make sure you know exactly where you are calling from. Not everybody knows every street, even folks that live or work there. Look around for a "landmark". I'll give you an example.....

Years ago I was hunting down a pickup load in downtown Toronto. I knew I was near but just couldn't find the ---- street. I pull over and use a payphone (pre cell phone). I get this nice young lady but we're getting noplace; street name.. no.... cross street...uhuh.
Finally the young lady's accent hits me and it clicks. I tell her I'm right across the street from The Beer Store.... "Oh',she says,'I know where that is". Perfect directions.

Y'see, her accent said Nova Scotia, I'm from New Brunswick, so I knew that a true Maritimer very quickly becomes aware of the Important Places wherever we live.

 

Whether you have a Trucker's GPS or a standard one, you should always remember that they are merely just tools to use on the road. I currently have the Garmin truck GPS and want to throw it out the window on a nearly daily basis, but that's a story for a different day. I tend to use my GPS for the features it brings such as having a rough ETA to different stops along your route, or being able to search POI's (points of interest) such as truck stops, rest areas, weigh stations, things like that.

I do NOT rely on even a truck GPS for routing, they WILL route you into a bad place at some point.. especially if you miss a turn and it tries to recalculate to get you back to your destination. Kinda reminds me of the recent Allstate commercial where the actor is playing the role of the 'GPS'

In fact I have used my Droid phone's GPS mapping and have had better results than the truck GPS on occasion, LOL.. go figure