Truck Topics

The CB Radio: What happened?

By Jeff Jensen, Editor
Posted Apr 13th 2006 6:29AM

expedited-trucking-driver.jpgThe good ole CB radio. 

Depending on your point of view, this electronic device is either a valuable communication tool or a living cliche, a fad who's popularity died decades ago.

Or, another view holds that this medium, considered by some as the forerunner of the Internet, is still a viable communication technology that has fallen into disfavor because of it's abuse by a few users.

Others would submit that the CB craze ran it's course and that interest in the medium withered from simple over-exposure.  They say that the level of popularity that CB radio attained in the mid to late 70's was unsustainable.

Of course, say others, the CB radio is a dinosaur in a digital world of cell phones and the Internet.  In any case, the CB's decline began a number of years ago and without its "traditional" role in trucking, it would have faded completely from the scene.

Expediters Phil and Diane Madsen
"We turn the radio on if there's a traffic slowdown or if we're on a load that involves more than one truck - we turn to another channel to stay in contact with the other truck(s)."

"Otherwise, we don't use the CB because of the banter, it's just disgusting.  The profanity, vulgarity, hostility and bad information - you name it, it's on there.  It's depressing to listen to, so we keep it turned off."

"We do enjoy the emergency weather feature, though.  If a storm is coming through, we get the alarm, so for that reason alone, we'll always have a CB in the truck."

It's origins
Citizens' band radio (CB) is, in the United States, a system of short distance radio communication between individuals on a selection of 40 channels within the single 27 MHz (11 meter) band. 
 
The citizens' band radio service was formed following a decision in 1945 by the US government that its citizens should be permitted a short-distance radio band for personal communication. The 11-meter band was taken from the amateur radio service for the Citizen's band. But it was not until the 1970s, when technology had advanced to reduce costs, that the CB market prospered, with U.S. truckers being at the head of the boom.
 
CB clubs were formed and a special CB slang language evolved. The prominent use of CB radios in mid- and late-1970s films and television shows  helped to establish the radios as a nationwide craze in the mid-1970s.
 
Originally CB did require a license and the use of a call sign but when the CB craze was at its peak, many people ignored this requirement and used made up "handles." 

The use of handles instead of radio call signs is related to the common practice of using the radios to warn other drivers of speed traps
during the time when the U.S. dropped the national speed limit to 55 mph beginning in 1974 in response to the 1973 hike in oil prices. The FCC recommended the use of ten-codes and these were used, often in a shortened form, but also many slang terms were developed.

The early CB radios sold for mobile use in the US had only 23 channels but in 1977, an additional 17 channels were added for a total of 40 channels, to relieve some of the overcrowding on the original 23 channels. Channel 9 was reserved for emergency use. Channel 19 became the most popular channel, especially among truck drivers.

Expediter Chet Merithew
"I love my CB!  Not so much because I want to talk, it just gives me a lot of information.  I will admit that there's a lot of foolishness on the radio with the profanity and people sharing their music."

"It's a valuable tool and I feel blind without it."  


The low cost and simple operation of CB equipment gave access to a communications medium that was previously only available to specialists. The "boom" in CB usage in the 1970s bears several similarities to the advent of the Internet in the 1990s. 
 
When the World Wide Web gained a foothold and the Internet suddenly became something normal consumers were interested in, comparisons were made to the CB radio craze of the 1970s as the hot new communication gizmo.

So, what happened?
Misuse is what happened.  Place the blame on lack of regulatory enforcement of the airwaves and the fact that anyone with the price of the equipment can be up and transmitting immediately after the purchase of that equipment with no knowledge of radio etiquette or procedure. 

Blame it on the idiots with a mic in their hand who think they have found a captive audience for their blatherings and blame it on the CB "DJ's" who insist on sharing their musical tastes with that same audience.

Expediters Don and Yvonne Gibson
"We don't use the CB very much because of the foul-mouthed language.  It's gotten so bad...
We don't use it unless there's a traffic jam and I need to find out what the problem is.  We also use it for the emergency weather band, but except for that and traffic reports, it stays off."

Or, how about the CB clown who owns and misuses every sound effect gimmick known along with the echo unit that transfroms his every rant and rave into an unintelligible mess?  You can also place the blame on all of the radio "Rambo's" and their constant profanity and vulgarities that turn the airwaves into an X-rated wasteland.

At its best, the Citizens Band can be such a useful tool in so many ways -  it can provide valuable information, bring people together and even save lives. 

There are still many professional drivers and people outside of trucking who use the technology in the proper fashion, but it's a shame how a very vocal and noisy minority has appropriated the medium and rendered it undesirable and unusable for so many.

To be sure, there are other factors in play in the demise of the Citizens Band, but many drivers will tell you that its no longer a part of their professional lives.

  
Expediter Leo Bricker
"I don't use the CB because of the foolishness and profanity.  That's all that I hear wherever I am, so I use it if I get into a traffic situation and when a shipper or receiver says to tune to a certain channel."

"By the time I turn the radio on, I'm usually in the thick of a traffic problem, so I just listen to the chatter to find out what the problem is."

"Another reason I don't use the CB is because I have an amateur radio license (technician's license), so if I'm going to do anything radio-related, I'll use the amateur radio.  It's more mature, regulated and I can get on there and have good conversations.  It's a far more enjoyable medium than CB radio."