Cabbie Complaints

I take cabs a lot, way more than I should. I have developed distinct pet peeves that relate to my taxi ride. Most people don’t like when a driver attempts to strike up conversation, this doesn’t bug me in the least. Even when I’m not in the mood to chat, which is rarely, I’m always happy that they are trying. I’m their customer, they are providing a service, they should be making small talk. What they should not be doing is talking on their cell phones, even if the cell is hands free. I don’t get to sit at my job talking on the phone to friends and family as I work. When I was in retail and food service, sure I would talk to co-workers but would stop when a customer was there to turn all attention on them. I want to start tipping less if the diver is chatting away to someone else. I tend to tip around $1-$2. The only time I ever fought with a cabbie and actually not only did I not tip him, I even paid less then the stated fair, was when he took a strange route that ended up costing $5 more then I had ever paid to get from home to work. I stood up to him then. I wish I could stand up to them when they are talking on the phone. But what would I even say?