Allowing emergency services drivers to use hand-held devices while driving
Seeking views on the proposal to establish 2 new exemptions to the offence of using a hand-held mobile phone for emergency services drivers in Great Britain.
Regulation 110 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 was enacted in 2003. It prohibits a driver from holding and using a mobile phone or similar device while driving.
In March 2022, the regulation was amended to include a definition of a device that ‘is capable of transmitting and receiving data, whether or not those capabilities are enabled’. Such a device cannot be held and used by a driver while driving.
Government has proposed to amend the legislation that governs the use of hand-held phones while driving for users of Airwave Tetra and the emergency services network.
It would allow drivers of emergency service vehicles to use ‘press-to-talk’ mode on a hand-held device to communicate through the existing Airwave Tetra system and the forthcoming Emergency Services Network.