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NYC to Ban All Cabbie Phone Calls

Even hands-free devices will be a no-go under new rules limiting electronics

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 16, 2009 10:29 AM CDT

(Newser) – New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission is cracking down on its drivers, proposing tough new rules today that ban the use of any electronic communication devices while on the job, hands-free included. "Every driver will be prohibited from even wearing a Bluetooth device on their ears and after three strikes will be out of our industry and off the road,” the commissioner tells the Post. About time, says one rider. "It pisses me off.”

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The new rules are designed to keep this from happening. (AP Photo)

A woman gets into a taxi outside Penn Station in New York. (AP Photo)

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The time has come to put an end to cellphone abuse once and for all. - Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Matthew Daus

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NYC to Ban All Cabbie Phone Calls