Taxi drivers using cellphones while driving? Legal?

[yootuber]

A friend of mine was driving his cab the other day and was given a $167.00 fine for using his cellphone while driving.
He was pulling over while contacting a customer to determine their location.
I think that if he was using his phone for personal reasons the ticket is justified but to perform his job serving the public better he should be exempt.
The cop said he should use the 2-way radio but how can he contact the customer through a 2-way radio??? DUMB.....Besides if you were to put the cellphone on speaker function whats the difference then?
Bottom line is I think Taxi drivers should be able to use their cellphones providing it is involving their job.

Your opinions are appreciated!

[Captain Awesome]

I think your friend should spend $50 on Bluetooth thingy and move on.

[gambler]

I think as a professional driver that strangers entrust their lives to, he should be fined double.

[grammafreddy]

I think as a professional driver that strangers entrust their lives to, he should be fined double.

Triple works for me.

He could have pulled over to make the call.

[big-d2C]

a couple of thinks: op said cabby was in the process of pulling over to make call and that their were looking for the exact location of a fare, granted if he was dialing before stopped this will not matter but if he just had his phone in his hand then as siad it would be no different then using the 2 way radio ( and on that note the 2 way or CB radios used by most cab companies are able to dial out to a land line number and are even used to receive calls from people looking for a ride) and again to dial off of the radio would pretty much be the same issue as a cell phone but worse IMO by usually not having a screen to show the numbers that are dialed and the dialer losing their place and paying more attention to the radio trying to dial. sorry if this post is hard to follow had a long day and im tired

[gambler]

I think your friend should spend $50 on Bluetooth thingy and move on.

10/10 Captain. As a "professional driver", did he not think of this long ago? He should be fined $3000.00 for stupidity and consider himself lucky.

[Bsuds]

Probably the same idiot I see speeding through School zones all the time!

But officer I had to get to my next customer.

The only thing worse than someone who still uses a cell phone while driving is the person who figures it's OK to do so. They both shouldn't be allowed to drive.

[nickroth]

I think as a professional driver that strangers entrust their lives to, he should be fined double.

Triple works for me.

He could have pulled over to make the call.

Why should he have to pay any more than the rest of us would have to?

Pulling over isn't always an option. If I'm in town I put the phone on speaker and set it on my lap or on the console. If I'm in a more rural area it's one hand on the wheel and one hand holding my phone to my ear! Screw bluetooth!

[Bsuds]

Pulling over isn't always an option. If I'm in town I put the phone on speaker and set it on my lap or on the console. If I'm in a more rural area it's one hand on the wheel and one hand holding my phone to my ear! Screw bluetooth!

So instead of paying $50. for a bluetooth device you would rather pay a much higher fine. I hope you get your wish and you don't kill someone in the process.

[Bsuds]

Why should he have to pay any more than the rest of us would have to?

Because a "Professional" driver should be held to a higher standard than a non professional.

[nickroth]

Pulling over isn't always an option. If I'm in town I put the phone on speaker and set it on my lap or on the console. If I'm in a more rural area it's one hand on the wheel and one hand holding my phone to my ear! Screw bluetooth!

So instead of paying $50. for a bluetooth device you would rather pay a much higher fine. I hope you get your wish and you don't kill someone in the process.

Having it on speaker is more dangerous than being hooked up to a bluetooth device how?

[Bsuds]

Having it on speaker is more dangerous than being hooked up to a bluetooth device how?

I'm not saying that but what I am saying is that according to the law it is not legal. Also with a bluetooth device you can make calls with voice activation and not have to dial or look at the screen. It may not be totally safe but a bit safer than not using one.

I personally would prefer a ban on using any device while driving. Your life or someone else's is just not worth it.

[twobits]

Police are exempt from the cell phone ban. Why can they not use bluetooth as well?
Personally, I think this law is silly with the exception of texting. Driving and talking with a phone to your ear is no more distracting than talking to the passenger beside you. How bout a hot coffee in one hand? We should perhaps ban that as well?

[zzontar]

How bout a hot coffee in one hand? We should perhaps ban that as well?

Yes

[big-d2C]

Police are exempt from the cell phone ban. Why can they not use bluetooth as well?
Personally, I think this law is silly with the exception of texting. Driving and talking with a phone to your ear is no more distracting than talking to the passenger beside you. How bout a hot coffee in one hand? We should perhaps ban that as well?

iv also seen police looking at their and using their laptops as they are driving