Free independent learning reference with original examples. Not official exam questions or personalized legal advice. Follow current provincial rules, signs and authorized directions.
Practise safe-driving decisions →A stationary car can still be operated under the Act
Section 265.01 does not limit operating to forward movement. A car stopped in a traffic queue or at a signal is still under the driver’s physical control on the highway. Switching off the phone’s screen also does not make holding it ready for use exempt.
The safe-parking exception is different: section 265.03(g) refers to a vehicle safely parked near the curb or outer edge of the shoulder. A brief traffic stop is not that situation. Find a lawful, safe parking place before dealing with a non-urgent message.
Source: Motor Vehicle Act — §§265.01–265.03 ↗Keep each exception within its own purpose
For a qualifying hands-free phone call, the device must be configured and used hands-free. The Act allows voice commands or one touch to initiate or accept a call and one to end it, with the other actions performed by voice. That does not authorize composing or reading messages.
The navigation exception allows looking at a portable GPS display for navigation; it does not generally authorize manually programming it while driving. Set the destination before leaving. Emergency-contact exceptions are for the emergencies described in the Act, not an ordinary call that feels urgent.
Source: Motor Vehicle Act — §§265.01–265.03 ↗Test the action rather than the phone’s label
Original worked cases
A driver waiting at red picks up a phone to check a message. The vehicle has stopped, but the statutory operating definition still applies. A red signal is not a messaging break.
A mounted phone is used to type a new destination. Being mounted does not transform manual programming into the navigation-viewing exception.
A driver parks safely near the curb in a permitted location before replying. That is materially different from stopping in the live lane or queue. Other parking controls must still be respected.
Reduce the need for an interaction during the trip
The province’s driver-distraction guidance recommends preparing navigation and controls before departure, letting calls go to voicemail and stopping safely when attention is needed elsewhere. Hands-free permission is not proof that a complicated conversation is free of distraction.
This page summarizes ordinary-driver situations rather than every occupational or emergency exemption. The free safe-driving and current-law exercises below help separate device use, vehicle control and lawful parking. They do not certify that a specific accessory or personal setup meets the Act.
Source: New Brunswick — Driver distraction ↗