[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee (now Mayor and
Council) of the Township of Berlin 8-4-1958 by Ord. No. 13:4 (Ch.
107 of the 1976 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 8-15-1966; 7-3-1972]
A.
All public hacks, cabs and automobiles, or other motor vehicles used
for the transportation of passengers for hire, shall be licensed in
accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The license required
by this section shall be known as the "taxi owner's license."
B.
The taxi owners' licenses shall not be limited as to the number of
motor vehicles that may operate under the license privilege, and all
motor vehicles operated must be owned by the licensee.
C.
The motor vehicles licensed under this chapter may only be operated
by a person who possesses a taxi driver's license issued under this
chapter.
No person shall drive or operate as driver or chauffeur, or
otherwise any public hack, cab, automobile or other vehicle used for
the transportation of passengers for hire, unless such person shall
have a license issued for said purpose pursuant to the provisions
of this chapter. The license herein required shall be known as the
"taxi driver's license."
[Amended 6-2-1976 by Ord. No. 76:6; 9-12-1977; 12-12-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-23]
A.
No taxi owner's license shall be issued for any vehicle herein required
to be licensed until the owner thereof shall have filed an application
for the same, addressed to the Mayor and Council, setting forth the
character of the vehicle proposed to be licensed, the correct name
of the owner thereof, the residence or address of the principal office
of such owner, a complete schedule of the fares proposed to be charged
and such other facts as the said Mayor and Council may require; until
the vehicle proposed to be licensed shall have been inspected and
approved, in writing, by the Chief of Police of the Township of Berlin;
until there shall have been paid to the Township Clerk the license
fee hereinafter provided; and until there shall have been submitted
to the Township Attorney and approved by him as to both form and sufficiency,
and filed with the Township Clerk, a policy of insurance, with the
premium prepaid thereon, an insurance policy which shall be issued
by an admitted insurance company duly licensed to transact business
under the insurance laws of the State of New Jersey or a company registered
to do business in the state, the policy providing for not less than
$35,000 of motor vehicle liability insurance coverage or the amount
of motor vehicle liability insurance coverage required pursuant to
Section 1 of P.L. 1972, c. 197 (N.J.S.A. 39:6B-1), whichever is greater,
to satisfy all claims for damages, by reason of bodily injury to,
or the death of, any person or persons, resulting from, or on account
of, an accident, by reason of the ownership, operation, maintenance,
or use of such autocab upon any public street, and to satisfy any
claim for damages to property of any person or persons, resulting
from, or on account of, an accident, by reason of the ownership, operation,
maintenance, or use of such autocab upon any public street.
B.
Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the owner of an autocab from
obtaining any additional amount of motor vehicle liability insurance
coverage from a company licensed outside the State of New Jersey.
C.
A license issued under this chapter shall be effective and operation
thereunder shall be permitted only so long as the insurance policy
shall remain in force to the full and collectible amounts as aforesaid.
D.
The insurance policy shall provide for the payment of any final judgment
recovered by any person on account of the ownership, maintenance,
or use of the autocab, or any fault in respect thereto, and shall
be for the benefit of every person suffering loss, damage or injury
as aforesaid.
No taxi driver's license shall be granted to any person who
shall make application for said taxi driver's license unless said
applicant shall comply with the motor vehicle regulations in the State
of New Jersey.
No taxi owner's license or taxi driver's license shall be issued
to any person who has not been a resident of Camden County, New Jersey,
for at least 90 days prior to the date of making application.
The Chief of Police of the Township of Berlin shall make an
investigation and shall submit a report evidencing the findings of
said investigation to the Mayor and Council of the Township of Berlin,
for approval or disapproval of said license by the Mayor and Council
of the Township of Berlin.
[Added 12-12-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-23]
A.
Each operator or driver of an autocab for which the owner thereof
is seeking the consent to operate in the Township of Berlin shall
submit to the performance of a criminal history record background
check. The cost for the criminal history record background check,
including all costs of administering and processing the check, shall
be borne by the operator or driver of the autocab.
B.
A person shall be disqualified from operating or driving an autocab
if a criminal history record background check required pursuant to
this section reveals a record of conviction of any of the following
crimes:
(1)
In New Jersey or elsewhere, any crime as follows: aggravated assault,
arson, burglary, escape, extortion, homicide, kidnapping, robbery,
aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault or endangering the welfare
of a child pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4, whether or not armed with
or having in his possession any weapon enumerated in Subsection r
of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-1, a crime pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A.
2C:39-3, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4, or N.J.S.A. 2C:39-9, or other than a disorderly
persons or petty disorderly persons offense for the unlawful use,
possession or sale of a controlled dangerous substance as defined
in N.J.S.A. 2C:35-2.
(2)
In any other state, territory, commonwealth, or other jurisdiction of the United States, or any country in the world, as a result of a conviction in a court of competent jurisdiction, a crime which, in that other jurisdiction or country, is comparable to one of the crimes enumerated in Subsection B(1) above.
C.
If a person who has been convicted of one of the crimes enumerated in Subsection B(1) and/or (2) above can produce a certificate of rehabilitation issued pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:168A-8 or, if the criminal offense occurred outside New Jersey, an equivalent certificate from the jurisdiction where the criminal offense occurred, the criminal offense shall not disqualify the applicant from operating or driving an autocab.
D.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to an operator or
driver of an autocab who has received the consent to operate in the
Township of Berlin prior to November 29, 2011.
[Amended 12-12-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-23]
A.
There shall be available for issuance two taxi licenses in the Township
of Berlin, which shall be issued to the highest qualified bidder therefor
at a sale for public auction for that purpose conducted or supervised
by the Township Clerk.
(1)
A minimum bid of $1,000 shall be required.
(2)
The Township reserves the right to reject all bids where the highest
bid is not accepted.
(3)
In addition to the fees provided for in § 299-9, the recipient of a license shall reimburse the Township for any costs incurred in connection with the public notice requirements established pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:16-2.1. In the event more than one license is issued at the same public auction, the recipients thereof shall equally split the costs of such reimbursement.
B.
The license herein provided for shall be signed by the Township Clerk
and shall have the Township Seal affixed thereto. The Township Clerk
shall not issue any license until the application therefor has been
approved by the Mayor and Council and the conditions precedent, to
wit: the payment of the license fees, the criminal history background
check and, in the case of a taxi owner's license, the filing of the
policy of insurance herein provided for, approved by the Mayor and
Council, together with the power of attorney, shall have been complied
with.
[Amended 4-29-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-3]
The fee(s) payable hereunder shall be as set forth in Chapter 156, Fees.
The taxi owner's license herein provided shall bear a number
and shall state the name of the person licensed. It shall briefly
describe the vehicle licensed and contain the motor vehicle license
number, as well as the manufacturer's number, of such vehicle.
The Township Clerk shall keep a register of all licenses granted
under the provisions of this chapter, which register shall show the
character of the license, its number, date of issue, name of person
licensed and any other information pertaining thereto. He shall keep
all applications, and upon those which may be granted, he shall endorse
the number of the license issued in pursuance thereof.
All licenses granted hereunder shall expire on the first day of July succeeding the date of issue. In the case of application for a taxi owner's license made after the first day of January in any year, the fee to be paid therefor shall be 1/2 of the amount stated in § 299-9 hereof.
The charge for carrying passengers shall not exceed the rates
set forth in the application for the owner's license.
Every holder of a taxi driver's license, when driving or operating
any vehicle herein required to be licensed, shall have in his possession
the license issued to him.
All vehicles herein required to be licensed, used or operated
for the carrying of passengers within the scope of this chapter, shall
be automobile sedans with a minimum of three doors, at least two of
which doors shall be for the exclusive use of the passengers. Said
automobiles shall at all times be clean and in good repair.
The Mayor and Council shall make reasonable regulations respecting
the use of vehicles licensed hereunder, public hack stands, the number
of licensed vehicles which may stand in any one place at the same
time, the inspection of vehicles licensed and to be licensed hereunder,
the inspection of drivers licensed hereunder and such other regulations
as may promote the public convenience and safety.
No driver or other person interested in or connected with any
vehicle licensed hereunder shall solicit customers in a noisy or offensive
manner.
[Added 6-2-1976 by Ord. No. 76:6]
Owners and drivers of taxicabs licensed out of the jurisdiction
of this Township may be allowed to bring their taxicabs into this
Township, but on specific call only, whether transporting a passenger
within this Township to a point outside the limits or discharging
a passenger transported from a point outside of the Township limits
to a point within the limits, and the name of the passenger so calling
him shall be given by the owner or driver when requested by the Township
police or other lawful persons. Such taxicabs shall not be parked
in this Township, nor shall the drivers thereof cruise on the streets
of this Township at any time for the purpose of soliciting passengers,
nor shall they, in the nighttime or other periods of darkness, when
in this Township, permit any advertising lights on the taxicab to
remain lighted; provided, however, that the same or similar substantial
reciprocal rights are granted to owners and drivers of taxicabs licensed
in this Township by the municipalities in which the aforesaid owners
or drivers are licensed.
[Added 6-2-1976 by Ord. No. 76:6]
Each applicant granted a driver's license as required by this
chapter shall be issued a license card in evidence thereof in a form
approved by the Mayor and Council of the Township of Berlin and signed
by the Township Clerk in its behalf. Said license card shall at all
times be carried by the driver while operating a vehicle as provided
for in this chapter. In addition, the owner of the vehicle shall furnish
a card with the name of the driver, which shall at all times be prominently
displayed and adequately posted in the interior of any vehicle operated
by the licensee, so that the face thereof shall be at all times in
full view and plainly legible to any passenger seated on the rear
seat of such vehicle, and there shall be affixed to such card in full
view of such passengers a photograph, of a size not less than 1 1/4
inches in height and one and 1 3/4 inches in length, of such
licensed driver, together with a photograph of the licensed owner
of such vehicle of the same size, and each of such photographs shall
have indicated thereon the words "Licensed Taxicab Owner" or "Licensed
Taxicab Driver," as the case may be.
[Added 6-2-1976 by Ord. No. 76:6; amended 12-12-2011 by Ord. No.
2011-23]
A.
No vehicle as provided for in this chapter shall hereafter be operated
in this Township unless and until there is prominently displayed in
the interior thereof, within the full view and access of any passengers
therein, a copy of the taxi owner's license and a complete list of
fares, charges or tariff rates charged for transportation of passengers,
which fares, charges or tariff rates so displayed, and no other, shall
be those charged any passenger so transported.
B.
Every owner of an autocab shall cause to be displayed on the body
of the vehicle the taxi license number issued to that vehicle, which
shall be three inches in height and located in the center of the rear
quarter panels on both the driver and passenger sides and the rear
center line of the trunk of the vehicle.
C.
Each autocab shall display on each rear door the name of the Township
of Berlin and any other municipality which has issued a taxi license
to the owner in letters three inches in height.
A.
The Mayor and Council may suspend or revoke any license issued hereunder
for the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or for
the violation of any of the rules and regulations made, adopted or
promulgated by the Mayor and Council, which rules are adopted by the
Mayor and Council in accordance with the provisions hereof.
B.
A second suspension for the same reason or, in any case, a third
suspension of a taxi driver's license shall revoke the license.
[Amended 6-2-1976 by Ord. No. 76:6]
Any person violating or failing to comply with any of the provisions
of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punishable by a
fine of not more than $500 or by imprisonment in the county jail for
a term not to exceed 90 days, or both, in the discretion of the court.
The continuation of such violation for each successive day shall constitute
a separate offense, and the person or persons allowing or permitting
the continuation of the violation may be punished as provided above
for each separate offense.
[Added 1-23-1995 by Ord. No. 1995-2]
A.
No taxicab license shall be issued to, or renewed for, any taxicab
unless and until proof is given to the Township Chief of Police, or
his designee, that such taxicab has adequately provided for the safety
of children under the age of five years, who would be passengers in
that taxicab. In the case of a taxicab fleet, such proof shall consist
of a written policy and posted notice at the base of operation and
in all fleet taxicabs, conspicuous to drivers, setting forth that
prior to the operation of the taxicab, children 18 months of age or
younger, who are passengers in a taxicab, shall be placed in a federally
approved child restraint seat and that children over the age of 18
months but under the age of five years must be placed in a car seat
if riding in the front seat of a taxicab, or in a lap and/or lap and
shoulder harness seat belt, if riding in the rear seat of a taxicab.
A taxicab fleet must at all times keep and maintain, in fleet vehicles
or at the base of operation, a total number of federal approved car
seats equal to 25% of the number of licensed taxicabs in its fleet,
which shall at all times be available for use by drivers of fleet
taxicabs. In the case of an independent owner, such proof shall consist
of proof that the independent owner maintains a federally approved
car seat in the passenger compartment or trunk of the licensed vehicle
at all times for use in accordance with this provision.
B.
The holder of taxicab licenses prior to the effective date of this section amendment shall have 30 days from the effective date of this section to comply with those requirements before any penalty may be imposed for violation thereof. The license of any taxicab owner or driver who has not complied with the requirements of this section after the time period indicated hereinabove, shall be subject to penalties as set forth in §§ 299-21 and 299-22 of this chapter. The requirements of this section shall be strictly applied to any applicant for license of renewal of a license after the effective date of this section.
C.
Every person operating a taxicab who is transporting a child under
the age of five years on roadways, streets or highways of the Township,
shall be responsible for the protection of the child by properly using
a child passenger restraint system that complies with federal vehicle
safety standards. No driver shall operate a taxicab in which a child
five years or younger is a passenger unless, a child 18 months of
age or younger is in a car seat regardless of whether such child is
in the front or rear seat, a child over 18 months of age but less
than five years is in a car seat if a front seat passenger or is in
a lap belt or lap belt and shoulder harness if a rear seat passenger.
[Added 12-12-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-23]
The following terms, as used in this chapter, shall have the
meanings set forth below, unless the context within which the term
is used clearly provides for a different meaning:
Includes any automobile or motor car, commonly called "taxi,"
engaged in the business of carrying passengers for hire which is held
out, announced or advertised to operate or run or which is operated
or run over any of the streets or public highways of this state and
particularly accepts and discharges such persons as may offer themselves
for transportation from points or places to points or places within
or without the state.
Includes any individual, copartnership, association, corporation
or joint-stock company, their lessees, trustees or receivers appointed
by any court whatsoever.
Includes any street, avenue, park, parkway, highway or other
public place.
