Taxi driver attacks passengers who asked him not to use phone

There are no statistics to back up the claim, but personal observation by this correspondent has led to the conclusion that taxi drivers are among the worst drivers in Mexico.

Not only are they ill-trained but habits such as texting and speaking on cell phones while driving — some even watch videos on dash-mounted screens — put many people at risk.

But complaining doesn’t necessarily accomplish anything, as a couple of passengers in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, discovered this week. When they asked the driver to stop using his phone and focus on driving instead, he didn’t take the request calmly.

Instead, he physically assaulted them. The passengers got out of the vehicle with the aid of passersby and their attacker fled the scene.

The unidentified driver and his cab — number 02-968 — are being sought by state traffic police in the resort destination after a formal complaint was filed.

Traffic regulations forbid the use of mobile phones while driving except when the driver is using hands-free devices or a speakerphone.

Source: Quadratín (sp)

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Manzanillo, Colima, México, 13 de marzo de 2026. La doctora Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, presidenta Constitucional de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos en conferencia de prensa matutina, “Conferencia del Pueblo” desde Colima. La acompañan Indira Vizcaíno Silva, gobernadora Constitucional del Estado de Colima; Omar García Harfuch, secretario de Seguridad y Protección Ciudadana (SSPC); Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles, secretario de Marina (Semar); Bulmaro Juárez Pérez, divulgador de lenguas originarias, presentador de la sección “Suave Patria”; Ricardo Trevilla Trejo, secretario de la Defensa Nacional (Sedena); Jesús Antonio Esteva Medina, secretario de Infraestructura, Comunicaciones y Transportes; Bryant Alejandro García Ramírez, fiscal general del Estado de Colima; Fabián Ricardo Gómez Calcáneo; Rocío Bárcena Molina, subsecretaria de Desarrollo Democrático, Participación Social y Asuntos Religiosos de la Secretaría de Gobernación; Efraín Morales López, director general de la Comisión Nacional del Agua (Conagua); Marcela Figueroa Franco, secretaria ejecutiva del Sistema Nacional de Seguridad Pública (SESNSP) y Guillermo Briseño Lobera, comandante de la Guardia Nacional (GN). Foto: Saúl López / Presidencia

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