CB use in Canada

GLaidlaw wrote:
Nobody can tell if you are listening to a CB radio so if police tell you differently- something is very suspect. They also cannot confiscate it- only radar detecting devices. Transmitting on a CB in Ontario brings you into the realm of the distracted driving law here- applies to all handheld devices. Hams still have the right to transmit using their microphones due to an exemption by regulation. They have renewed this once already for a number of years. Smart hams carry a copy of this regulation in case they are stopped. In their zeal to hit texting etc. they also caught 2-way radios in the net. You can listen to CB and adjust it as long as it is mounted in the car- not a handheld version. Good luck.

Pretty much the same here in BC. You can use your Amateur or CB radio at any time when in motion so long as it is a mobile (read: mounted) radio, and the only thing in your hand is the microphone. Handhelds are technically a no-no, but I suspect if you clipped it to your shirt such that it is up around your neck, and the only time you touch it is to transmit (read: push the PTT) that would be OK.

When the original BC law was being drafted, Amateurs were not going to be exempted. The ensuing outcry was so strong the Govt had to exempt us. The outcry was that if Amateurs could not transmit while mobile (in motion) then all Amateurs would be encouraged to remove their radio equipment from their vehicles. And all Amateurs that provided emergency communications would withdraw their services. Hence why the Govt exempted us.

So yes, you can use your CB radio in Canada. Just be smart about it. If not being used for convoy purposes, I'm not sure how useful CB's are now. Heck, I have one in my truck, but it very rarely even gets turned on. And if I ever acquire a new truck, I doubt I will install it.

Regards,
Mike