GPS and the Trainee
There was an interesting discussion on the Women in Trucking Face Book page. Should trainees be allowed to 
use GPS? There were great points made on both sides of the debate. Trainees should learn to read a map. GPS systems are not infallible. They need to learn the old way. The pro side, says that GPS is the way of the future. Some say that maps are relics.
If you read my blogs on a regular basis, you know that I struggle with technology. You will know that I am a map guy. Trip planning with my atlas is something that I actually enjoy. It can also beat my GPS with long routing. My GPS is still almost always on. Sure, we have our disagreements. When I go my own way the GPS stubbornly wants me to reroute back to its way. I stubbornly go my way, after all I am driving the truck and paying the expenses.
Back in high school, I took a typing class. Girls outnumbered boys about 10:1. As a bonus, I learned how to type. It was a semester long class. The first half of the semester we used manual typewriters. The second half they unveiled the electric ones. I thought that it was stupid. A teen age boy does not see the logic in learning outdated technology. 40 years later I can see the logic in it. I can't see the logic of not teaching it though.
Some of my old dog trucker friends believe that trainees should learn how to find addresses the old fashioned way. I agree. They believe that we should not be teaching them with the GPS system. I disagree. There is no reason that trainees can't learn both ways. I believe that they should. Back in the day we often called for directions. Those directions usually worked. GPS directions usually work. Neither way is perfect. Today's technology is incredible. We can look up an address on a smart phone or a computer. It can give us a street map, or even a satellite view. Modern communications in fleets can give u directions via an in cab monitor. Back in the day, I wrote all of my directions down in a notebook. After, I made it to the address, I would write them down on a 3x 5 card and file them in a box alphabetically by state – city – company. I had a briefcase full of city street maps. Those are all gone. All of that information fits easily into my IPAD.
There was an incident in Wisconsin. A driver followed his GPS onto a bike path. Eventually his truck ended up on a pedestrian bridge. That would not have happened if he had been trained in the fallacies of GPS. They are not perfect. We need to look up and see what is in front of us. Use our heads. The most important thing is to learn to think. Don't compound problems. Learning to use GPS properly is a good thing. Learning to think like an old dog is a better thing. Learning to do both is the best thing.