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Bright Lights, Bigger City  

TrucknLuvn 59M/41F  
670 posts
12/9/2018 8:09 pm

Last Read:
11/7/2021 12:32 am

Bright Lights, Bigger City

Joey and I have had our share of experiences going in and coming back out of New York City. Navigating our way around The Big Apple is never an easy task, but we have managed to successfully do just that several times now.

Whether we are delivering brand new store fixtures to the Louis Vuitton store at the corner of 57th Street and 5th Avenue...

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...Or picking up a load out on Long Island in Amityville, NY, we have never failed to get the job done! It may not have been easy, but we are always up for any challenge that gets thrown our way.

And that is why we didn't even bat an eyelash when we accepted a load delivering in Jamaica, NY, just around the corner from JFK airport. There's always a catch going into NYC and this load was no different. Due to the hazardous freight that we would be hauling, we had to make arrangements to have two FDNY firetrucks meet us at the Port of Entry building by the toll booths at the George Washington Bridge.

We arrived at the designated rendezvous point and I called the Manhattan FDNY dispatch office, while Joey took all of our paperwork to check in with the Port Authority. The firetrucks arrived and the Port Officer cleared us to cross into NYC.

I actually felt excited to begin our escorted adventure!

The firetruck that would be following us turned on his whoopee lights and blocked off the tollbooth traffic behind us, giving us an open lane to pull into. The firetruck in front of us also put his whoopee lights on and he waited at the entrance to the bridge until all of the vehicles in front of us had cleared.

Talk about a first for both Joey and myself!

Aside from our , we had our side of the George Washington Bridge entirely to ourselves as we crossed over into Manhattan!

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Our route took us through two tunnels as we crossed into The Bronx where we caught I-295 south to Long Island. We crossed over the Throgs Neck Bridge and merged onto I-495 west.

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Two miles later, we merged onto I-678 south towards JFK International Airport. We took the last exit on I-678. The morning rush was starting as traffic was already starting to back up onto the exit!



We eventually made it off the exit ramp and navigated our way through the maze of narrow streets until we finally arrived, safe and sound, at the correct delivery location. Once we had been directed into the secured parking area to wait our turn to get unloaded, our FDNY officially parted ways with us.

I cannot thank the FDNY enough for ensuring our safe and timely arrival to our delivery location! Those guys were awesome!

It took us about four hours to get unloaded and we were free to go on our merry way. We were already pre-planned to pick up a load 23 miles away in good ol' Amityville, so off we went to pick up our next adventure!

♡♡♡

♡Jess: The Trucker Babe

♡♡♡

Want more? Be sure to check out my blog: TrucknLuvn!


citizen4722 66M  
74582 posts
12/18/2018 4:48 pm

Whoopee! That's some adventure


TrucknLuvn replies on 12/20/2018 12:39 am:
It was, indeed!

LakeRidgeBBWSeek 63M
3847 posts
12/16/2018 6:27 pm

I drove truck in NOLA back in '06 and had to navigate around various closures due to Katrina 6 mnths before, no street signs for guidance, no GPS, and often into areas of the metro where getting shot at was all to common, just cuz you were in the shooters neighborhood. At that time there were 3 bridges open to cross from the northshore to the southshore (NOLA propper), 2 of which had been damaged by KAT (but declared safe to use), and traffic was often a nitemare to say the least. And NOLA being designed as it is, with very narrow streets in places, and very weird traffic flow signage/directions, it often became a 'try & make it work" situation. To make matters worse, my loads were often over long, over high, and and cumbersome to say the least, meant you had to be very carefull indeed as to where you drove, and whether you could back out if need be. Since somehow I beacme "GOOD" at this overall, I began to get loads daily into the worst parts of the city (I think some of my fellow drivers deliberatly were BAD at it so as to avoid such deliveries!) and so I got even better at it. While NOLA isnt New York by any means, it was a situation where an accident was inevitable given enough time, and so I changed jobs at the 1st opportunity !


TrucknLuvn replies on 12/16/2018 6:38 pm:
Respect! Neither my 25 year veteran hubby nor myself would want to do what you did in NOLA! I don't blame you for running as soon as you could either. No cdl holder wants to risk having an accident on their record! That's a one way ticket to the bread line.

Thanks for sharing!

pocogato12 71F  
37235 posts
12/11/2018 2:10 pm

I loved this post. I have never driven in NYC, never mind in a truck hauling freight!! What an experience. And thanks for the photo montage

(Virtual Symposium Group) use Virtual Symposium Group


TrucknLuvn replies on 12/11/2018 3:09 pm:
Glad to hear you enjoyed this post, Poco! Trust me, you're better off never driving in NYC! But, I'd you do have to drive there, I highly recommend driving one of those Smart cars. Big vehicles, like a 40' straight truck, do not fit in just one lane in Manhattan. One sees a lot of fingers flying or hears the phrase "f*&k you!" A LOT!

RobK2006 56M
5998 posts
12/10/2018 10:39 am

I do know what you mean. The endless crowds can be overwhelming. I'm a city person, but I could def imagine moving there and then finding it too much after awhile. But I love looking at all the buildings and going to the different areas of the city. I find it is a quite a friendly city.


TrucknLuvn replies on 12/11/2018 3:02 pm:
Friendly wouldn't be my first choice in an adjective that would be synonymous with NYC. lol Then again, nobody in any city cares for big trucks and/or their drivers.

TrucknLuvn 59M/41F  
1622 posts
12/10/2018 10:26 am

    Quoting RobK2006:
    I love NYC. I'd move there if I could.
I've never actually been to NYC as a tourist. I've only rolled through while working. I would love to see Times Square, take in a show on Broadway, or take a nice leisurely stroll through Cental Park someday, but I doubt that will be anytime soon!

I could not imagine ever wanting to live there though. From a trucker's perspective, I find the city to he overly crowded, incredibly expensive, and entirely too dirty (there's trash *everywhere* on the freeways) to want to call home.

But... To each his own, right?

Thanks for commenting!

♡Jess: The Trucker Babe

♡♡♡

Want more? Be sure to check out my blog: TrucknLuvn!


Paulxx001 66M
22642 posts
12/10/2018 8:55 am

Great story. I can't even begin to imagine what it's like to have all those bridges all to yourself... but you have the pics to prove it! Sounds like a classic... 🤗🔥❤️


TrucknLuvn replies on 12/10/2018 10:29 am:
I am a firm believer in "pictures or it never happened!" It's a great way to show everybody that we are exactly who we say we are on here!

RobK2006 56M
5998 posts
12/10/2018 6:15 am

I love NYC. I'd move there if I could.


TrucknLuvn 59M/41F  
1622 posts
12/10/2018 4:49 am

    Quoting TicklePlease:
    I couldn't even begin to imagine having the GW bridge to yourselves!!!!!

    I couldn't even begin to imagine driving anything bigger than my car in NYC either lol!

    Thanks for the pics!
It actually felt surreal crossing the GW without being surrounded by traffic. It felt wrong somehow.

It definitely is not easy trying to navigate NYC in a 40' straight truck. The hardest part is trying to avoid low clearance bridges and overpasses. 95% of the tunnels and bridges in and around NYC cannot accommodate a truck that requires a 13'6" height to safely pass underneath. One can get into a big mess rather quickly if a route hasn't been planned out in advance!

Thank you for reading and commenting!

♡Jess: The Trucker Babe

♡♡♡

Want more? Be sure to check out my blog: TrucknLuvn!


TicklePlease 56F  
13851 posts
12/10/2018 4:36 am

I couldn't even begin to imagine having the GW bridge to yourselves!!!!!

I couldn't even begin to imagine driving anything bigger than my car in NYC either lol!

Thanks for the pics!


TrucknLuvn 59M/41F  
1622 posts
12/9/2018 8:10 pm

Honestly, I have more of a love/hate relationship with NY!

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♡Jess: The Trucker Babe

♡♡♡

Want more? Be sure to check out my blog: TrucknLuvn!


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