1/2 mile MAY be too far away. It all depends on how much power they are
running. I used to be able to hear a McDonalds three cities away .. yet
there is a Dunkin Donuts shop I can only hear in my car when I'm within 1
block of the store. ...

that is all true. In one spot, there was a McDonald's that I could hear for
several blocks away while in my car, but the Taco Bell near there I could only
hear while in Taco Bell's parking lot.