So I had a pax today get super pissed cuz I wouldn’t let him take an open beer in the car. Of course, I rated him accordingly after telling him it’s against the law but, do other drivers allow it?
Of course I cannot be the only one who gets this, right?
I think it is allowed because it’s a rideshare or something like that(can’t remember proper term) it was said on a post about car seats
I have heard of drivers offering their pax beer while opening one for themselves while driving and the pax were underage
Im retired law enforcement. It’s against the law. The alcohol can’t be accessible to the driver’s reach.
Texas Penal Code 49.031. (b)(c)(1). You have to be a limo, bus, taxicab or motor home. Uber/Lyft is not considered any of those as it’s a private vehicle.
Is that why some people are posting pictures about having a limo license? I was wondering what was the big deal about that
if they’re actually driving a limo, it would be legal. It’s not so much about the license as it is about the physical barrier between the driver and the passenger. Alcohol cannot be accessible to the driver.
i never take kids/ babies without carseats. Legal or not. This is big city drivng. Im not going to be responsible cor the death of a child if a crash occurs.
law or not. Kids need car seats. Law or not. Unless you wanna be responsible for the death of a child that could have been avoided had they been in a car seat. Law or not. We shouldn’t condone bad parenting and be GOOD HUMANS.
I’m glad you asked…I’m actually still car safety seat certified for one more year. There’s A LOT of info on that because of age, height and weight of the child…but general rule is:
Rear-Facing Seat: Infants stay rear-facing as long as possible – to the upper weight limits of the harness – but never forward-facing before their first birthday and 20-22 pounds.
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Forward-Facing Seat: Toddlers go forward-facing in a five-point harness until the upper limits of the harness, usually 40-65 pounds.
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Booster Seat: Children from about age four up to 4’9” tall.
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Adult Safety Belt: From 4’9” and taller.
.0-2 years old (depending on weight/height) need to be rear facing. The longer they’re rear facing, the safer the child is. After that, forward facing is acceptable. Almost all cars have the latch system now. Latch can only be used up to 40 lbs. or whatever your car owners manual says. After that, you then need to use the seat belt again. If you’re using the seat belt, make sure and lock the retractor…meaning, once you thread the seat belt through the car seat, lock it into the belt buckle, then pull all the slack out of the retractor until it stops. Once you let all the slack back into the retractor…you should hear it clicking. This locks the seat belt and won’t allow the slack to move forward. With adults, we fall into the seatbelt and wants the seatbelt feels enough stress, it locks the retractor. You don’t want a child safety seat moving forward like that, it can cause serious whiplash effects to the child.
thank you… again… just was trying to help the parents that need rides & have their kids. But like you said there’s a lot of factors
I always approach it as “can I show you a different way to do that?” That way, you’re not calling them stupid or shoving something down their throat that makes them feel inferior.
“1) the passenger area of a motor vehicle designed, maintained, or used primarily for the transportation of persons for compensation, including a bus, taxicab, or limousine; or …”
We ARE driving for compensation.
taxi and limo have commercial insurance covering them in a manner that they dont have to have child safety seats and can have alcohol. We however are not included in that rule
“Down it or dump it, 'cause I can’t afford an open container ticket, thank you.”
Never had a problem.
I think we might have been covered under the old houston tnc permits. I’m pretty sure that went away when the state level rules passed.
Believe it or not, cops are not judge, jury, or executioner. So 20 years of “police work” while I respect your experience, really doesn’t make you an expert when it comes to what is decided in court.
I’m going by personal experience with those types of cases, or I wouldn’t have said anything. And for the record, I never claimed to be an expert, or “Judge, Jury and Executioner.” Well, except for that one guy who tried to kill me. 
Give me the cases so I can look them up to verify. As we all know though, not every case is similar. If my blood teat determined I had no alcohol in my system and my lawyers show I was giving a ride on the app, then I am 100%. sure my case would be dismissed before it even goes to trial.
Furthermore, if you were the cop that charged these drivers and you knew they didn’t have any alcohol in their system, yet just wanted to be a b@$&!.. by not only charging them but following through with the case, that’s pretty messed up.
I highly doubt the prosecutor would even care to take it to court, if the driver proved to have no alcholol in their system and was on the app, with a legit rider, so I am calling your personal experience 100% 
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the law can always he argued. A attorney fresh out of law school can argue that it is indeed used for transportation of persons for compensation. Laws change all the time. This particular one just hasn’t been updated since rideshare is still relatively new.