Urgent: GPS in Toronto

Open up your laptop and look for the Flying J. There's about 4 there. Sheesh.

 

This should be good

 

Gee. What did we all do before GPS and the internet? I guess we went into a mad panic and just sat there afraid to move.

Want a helpful tip??? By a good map. Rand McNally truck edition. Learn how to read it. It is the best friend you can have.

 

Yeah, what DID we do before all this technology fell in our laps. A lot of hit and miss. But I don't know what I'd do without my iPad and Google maps. GPS is a great thing but not perfect.
But I agree with the guys on here who say you should use different methods. I still like to look at the Rand Mac, just get get the feel of where I'm going. And as I haul Hazmat too google isn't too swift on telling you the correct way. I've been thrown under the bus a couple of times, so you have to be careful.

 

Walmart has them, though not sure if its a trucker gps or not? Can pick up a trucker GPS at most major truckstops though they will be a little expensive. Just make sure you also have a rand McNally motor carrier road atlas. It shows where all of the D.O.T Scales, the low clearance bridges, the restricted truck routes, and the weight/height restrictions are. I never leave home without it. Also get you a pocket truckstop guide at any of the truckstops, which tells where all of the truckstops are and the rest areas. Another very handy tool is the "Exit" guide which you can get at truckstops. It tells whats on each exit of the divided highways (i.e. truckstops, walmarts, shops and other services such as hospitals, police stations, etc). It comes in handy if you breakdown in between exits, tells you where the closest service points are. GPS has a lot of that but GPS sometimes lies, especially if you don't buy one or upgrade often.

 

Good grief folks. What did we do before gps and internet? We worked a lot harder to get the same information. We sat and counted little numbers between cities and intersections to get a half ### eta. We drove to the receiver wondering where the actual entrance was, got there early to find there was no place to park and backtracked to the closest truck stop. I could do this all day..

The truth is, gps's, laptops, smartphones, etc, are excellent tools that, when used properly, make our jobs much easier. You still need to trip plan correctly, now it just takes less time.

To the op, I went with the rand mcnally tnd 720. It's worked great for me plus i think rand mcnally has more truck experience than Garmin. It has lifetime map updates plus is coordinated with the atlas.

 

Just hit up a truck stop, they always have GPSs in stock and usually on sale. Also check craigslist.

 

You been given great advice here...listen to it. All of it. Maps , gps , all of the latest , greatest technologies are only tools. Use them all along with some common sense and critical thinking skills and a couple of phone calls to the receiving clerk/supervisor/desk , and you'll have very few headaches/problems....always remember a good , clear line of communication to and with the customer is a game-changer , never let someone convince you any different. A 10 minute phone conversation with the right person , will/can save you hours of trouble....

 

Key word near the end there is talk to theRight person. Some people at Shippers and receivers should not be allowed to give directions... I'm just sayin...

 

100 % agreed TexTrucker...it must be someone familiar with the roads locally , the low bridges/underpasses/railroad underpasses, any construction areas to be avoided , plus someone who is familiar with the way trucks (semi's) enter and exit the facility. The driver ( the person most responsible for obtaining this info "must" know which questions to ask and who to ask them of...if the person answering the phone to begin with can't answer the questions , then the next question to be asked is , would you please find someone , and get them to the phone that can answer the questions...this ain't rocket science here....been done for decades and decades....without all the "new stuff"...not saying the new technology is worthless because it's a great tool....but it will never replace the art of map reading and the skill of trip planning. When the lap-tops battery is dead and you're cell phone hasn't got a good signal that old Rand McNally is worth it's weight in gold...always will be.