Conduct & Company Policy · Driver Training VideoCB & Radio Etiquette

A CB radio hasn't required an FCC license since the early 1980s. Anybody can key up. That's exactly why manners matter — the channel only works as a tool if everyone on it follows the same basic rules.

Channel 19 is the channel truckers actually use nationwide for road chatter — backups, construction, where traffic is moving and where it isn't. It's not an official assignment, it's just what the whole industry settled on, so learn it before your first solo run, not during it.

Etiquette basics, in order:

One — listen before you key up. Stepping on someone else's transmission means nobody hears either one.

Two — keep it short and useful. State the hazard, the mile marker or landmark, and let go of the button.

Three — no profanity

The FCC prohibits obscene and indecent language on the CB band, and on top of that, dispatch and your company can often hear exactly what you say.

Four — emergency traffic always has priority. If someone calls out a real emergency, every other conversation stops.

Five — use plain language for anything safety-related. Slang is fine for small talk, but when it's a real hazard, say it in words a new driver would understand immediately.