General Knowledge · Distracted Driving
A CDL driver is stopped at a red light with the engine running. Under federal regulation, is it permissible to send a text message at that moment?
Explanation
Texting is still prohibited because the federal texting ban defines "driving" broadly enough to include a commercial motor vehicle that is temporarily stationary because of traffic or a traffic control device, so stopping at a red light does not create an exception. This is a genuine, specific federal rule, not just a required-knowledge topic area: 49 CFR 392.80(a) states "no driver shall engage in texting while driving," and 392.80(c) defines "driving" to include exactly this kind of momentary stop, excluding only a vehicle safely stopped off the highway. The other options fail for a shared reason: each assumes an exception (vehicle not moving, a time limit, no federal rule) that the actual regulation does not provide; the only exception 392.80 states is contacting law enforcement or emergency services.
Source: 49 CFR 392.80(a) and (c)
Related Distracted Driving questions
- A CDL driver wants to make a hand-held phone call. Under federal regulation, when is this actually permitted?
- While driving, a CDL driver unbuckles and leans over toward the passenger seat to grab a ringing phone, without ever holding it to their ear. Does this violate the federal hand-held phone restriction?
- Under federal regulation, which of the following is the one way a CDL driver may answer an incoming call on a mounted mobile phone without it counting as "hand-held" use?
- Eating a meal while driving and glancing at a roadside billboard are both distractions, but driver-training material sorts them into two different categories. What distinguishes the two?