Worst City To Drive A Truck In?

I often see and hear new drivers are petrified to hear they may have to drive in New York. I also hear some say that it is not that bad and other places are worse.

So....... What's the worst city you have had to drive in and why.

New York is by far the most difficult city to drive in. It's not the only difficult city and that doesn't mean there aren't cities a driver may dislike more. But there's really no debating, in an objective way, which is the most difficult city to drive a truck in. It's New York.

Now the debate for the next few will be a good one. Like most people hate Chicago. I thought the layout of the city made it easy to find your way around most of the time but the traffic was of course awful. But I didn't mind Chicago.

In fact, I'm from Buffalo which is 1/10th the size of Chicago and I have a more difficult time getting a truck around Buffalo than I do Chicago.

Pittsburgh is a brutal city to navigate. There are three rivers that converge there, 1,000 railroads that go through there, and it's in a mountainous region. It's really tough getting a big rig around there.

As a general rule the cities in the Northeast are the most difficult to navigate because they're the oldest. They were built a long, long time before anyone considered the possibility of 70 foot long, 13 1/2 foot high, 80,000 pound trucks roaming the planet. So there are tighter roads, more low bridges, more restricted routes, and the planning wasn't the best. The cities out West are generally easier to navigate than those in the East.

I often see and hear new drivers are petrified to hear they may have to drive in New York. I also hear some say that it is not that bad and other places are worse.

So....... What's the worst city you have had to drive in and why.

New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, and DC all have traffic, congestion issues. All things considered NYC and the surrounding, seemingly endless sprawl is by far the worst.

For me, I'd say Atlanta. I don't mind the challenges of New York, it's a challenge. Atlanta is just a royal pain to get around and everyone there seems to drive like they're in Grand theft auto.

I had to make a delivery to Boston-Logan Int'l. Airport a few months back. The company wanted me to avoid the miles and miles of tolls on the interstate heading into the city, so I had to take city streets all the way in. Then I had to make the craziest right turn ever, smack dab in the heart of downtown, at rush hour no less, on a corner that was half under construction. I couldn't swing wide so I had to go straight and block traffic in this busy intersection with cars honking and pedestrians staring, and do like a 7-point turn to make the corner without hitting anything. After I finally made my delivery, it was just as much of a pain getting back out of the city. Tight turns, narrow roads, a tunnel with low clearance that I almost went into and had to back out of, etc. I was so glad when I had the city lights of Boston in my mirrors.

San Francisco also sucked, but it wasn't nearly as bad. Traffic was insane, even at 6am and 50 miles east of the city on I-80. Once in the city, I did have to back into a driveway from the street; luckily, after a few cars zoomed past, I got two smart drivers who held up the rest of traffic for me. Boy was that a tight squeeze!

I guess every city has tough spots and easier spots.

Pittsburgh is a brutal city to navigate. There are three rivers that converge there, 1,000 railroads that go through there, and it's in a mountainous region. It's really tough getting a big rig around there.

Pittsburgh (shudders) I still break out in a cold sweat thinking about navigating around Pittsburgh on that cold April morning, delivering to Chris' Candies...I was definitely initiated into the world of old man trucking

I live near Seattle and I dread the time when I will have to drive a truck there lol. Guess I will find out when I finish school and start driving.

I use my phone GPS with satellite view on so I can see my route... Thank you GOOGLE... lol

NYC has inaccurate signs on their expressways - where trucks are SUPPOSED to be. Why can't they just take those signs down? It boggles my mind. I can think of two in particular. I know there are more. One on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (278 Eastbound) that tells trucks to get off on Atlantic Ave due to low clearance, and one on the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95) that also warns of low clearance. Both of these underpasses have clearance signs that are well below 13'6". Stuff like this makes NYC tough for the new driver that wouldn't know any better. However, here's a quick tip on inaccurate signs, if other trucks are rolling through, you're probably good to go.

I use my phone GPS with satellite view on so I can see my route... Thank you GOOGLE... lol

This has helped me many times. I would retrace my route backwards from my destination to see what it's like going into the city once I get off the expressway or interstate. You can make mental notes of landmarks where your turns will be. Sat view rocks.