[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Woodridge 11-19-2012 by L.L.
No. 2-2012 (Ch. 137 of the 1992 Code). Amendments
noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 375.
In order to protect the health, safety and well-being of all
Village of Woodridge residents, the Village of Woodridge Board of
Trustees deems it necessary to insure that taxicab companies with
offices or stands within the Village of Woodridge use cabs and drivers
that meet acceptable standards.
Only licensed taxi drivers or taxicab licensees under this chapter
may solicit business from hack stands, public highways or public or
private property within the Village of Woodridge.
A.
Before any license shall be issued under this chapter, the applicant
for such license shall be required to file with the Clerk of the Village
a verified application for such license on a blank application form
furnished by the Village Clerk for that purpose. The information provided
by the application shall include the name of the applicant, his/her
date of birth, his/her residence, length of residence in the Village,
previous taxicab business experience, business address, satisfactory
evidence of the good character of the applicant, including whether
the applicant was ever charged with a crime, proof of adequate insurance
and evidence that the applicant is able to serve the public health,
welfare and safety. If the applicant be a corporation, the names and
addresses of the officers of said corporation and the stockholders,
together with the names and addresses of the person or persons who
will actually manage the business and whether he/she was previously
convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor. Each cab, hack and automobile
or other vehicle used for transportation of persons over and upon
the streets of the Village for hire shall require a separate license.
B.
The type of motor vehicle to be used, the factory number, the state
license number, the number of years the vehicle has been driven and
the seating capacity according to its trade rating.
C.
Whether previously licensed to operate as a taxicab and, if so, where.
D.
Whether license to operate a taxicab has ever been suspended or revoked
and, if so, for what cause.
E.
Such other information as the Village Clerk may deem necessary.
F.
Such application shall be accompanied by the appropriate fee.
The fee for each license issued hereunder shall be the sum of
$275 per vehicle.[1] Such license shall expire on the first day of June and
may be renewed each year. A taxi license shall be deemed to have expired
if the holder shall fail to renew a license on or before the renewal
date set forth in this section.
A taxi license issued under this chapter may be transferred
during a license year from a business firm or corporation possessing
a valid taxi license to another person, firm or corporation only after
the transferee has made an application to the Village Board for consent
to transfer. The license shall not be transferred or sold unless the
transferee shall meet all of the requirements set forth in this chapter.
A.
No vehicle shall be licensed until it has been thoroughly and carefully
inspected and examined by the Village of Woodridge Police Department
and found to be in a safe condition for the transportation of passengers.
The approval by the Police Department shall be in writing and shall
accompany the application.
B.
Each vehicle shall be examined at least once each year within 30
days prior to making application for renewal of a license. The Police
Department may inspect a vehicle licensed hereunder at any time.
C.
The Village Board may revoke or suspend a license at any time whenever
it is determined that a vehicle is unfit for use as a taxicab.
If, upon inspection, a taxicab is found to be of lawful construction
and in proper condition, in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter, and upon the approval of the application and the payment
of the license fee hereinafter set forth, the same shall be licensed
by delivering to the owner a card of such size and form as may be
prescribed by the Village Clerk and a medallion to be affixed to the
front bumper.
No person shall drive a taxi subject to the provisions of this chapter until obtaining a taxicab driver's license issued in accordance with the provisions of § 362-10 of this chapter.
Before drivers shall be issued a license to operate a taxi or
public vehicle of any sort for the transportation of persons, each
applicant must first meet the following requirements subject to the
satisfaction of the Village of Woodridge Chief of Police:
A.
Passes a New York State chauffeur's license.
B.
Be over 18 years of age.
C.
Be sound physically and have good eyesight and not subject to epilepsy,
vertigo, heart trouble or any other infirmity of body or mind, which
might render him/her unfit for the safe operation of a public vehicle.
D.
Be able to read and write the English language.
E.
Be clean in dress and person and not addicted to the use of intoxicating
liquor or drugs.
F.
Produce on forms to be provided by the Village Clerk affidavits of
good character from two reputable citizens who have known him/her
personally and have observed his/her conduct for at least one year
preceding the date of the application, and a further testimonial on
a form provided for the purpose from his/her employer.
G.
Fill out, upon a blank application form to be provided by the Village
Clerk, a statement giving his/her full name, residence, places of
residence for a five-year period to moving to his present address,
age, height, color of eyes and hair, place of birth, whether a citizen
of the United States, places of previous employment for the last five
years, whether married or single, whether he/she has ever been arrested
or convicted of a felony or misdemeanor, whether his/her license has
ever been suspended or revoked, and for what cause, and the number
of the chauffeur's license issued by the state, which statement
shall be signed and sworn to by the applicant and filed with the Village
Clerk as a permanent record.
H.
The Village Clerk and Chief of Police are hereby authorized and empowered
to require such additional information as they may deem necessary.
Each application shall be accompanied by a certificate from
a physician duly licensed by the State of New York certifying he/she
has examined the applicant within the thirty-day period prior to filing
of the application and that in his/her opinion the applicant is not
afflicted with any disease or physical or mental condition or infirmity
which might make him/her an unsafe or unsatisfactory driver.
The annual license fee for drivers of public vehicles for hire
is hereby fixed at $50 per year.[1]
Upon satisfactory fulfillment of the requirements of this chapter,
there shall be issued to the applicant a driver's license by
the Village Clerk. All licenses shall be numbered in the order in
which they are issued and shall contain the name and place of residence
of the licensee and the date of the issuance and expiration of the
license, which driver's license shall be valid to and including
June 1 next succeeding, unless previously suspended or revoked. The
license, under penalty of revocation of the license, shall be constantly
and conspicuously displayed inside of the taxicab, together with a
current photograph, when the licensee is engaged in its employment.
Any person desiring to renew his/her driver's license issued herein shall make a new application for each year in the same manner as required above in § 362-10 for an original application.
Any driver's license issued hereunder or renewal thereof
may be suspended or revoked for cause by the Village Chief of Police.
Such action may be appealed within 10 days to the Village Board of
Trustees, which shall hold a hearing to review the Police Chief's
decision within 30 days.
Any person committing an offense against any provision of this
chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be guilty of a violation pursuant
to the Penal Law of the State of New York, punishable by a fine not
exceeding $250 or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 15 days,
or by both such fine and imprisonment. The continuation of an offense
against a provision of this chapter shall constitute, for each day
the offense is continued, a separate and distinct offense hereunder.
There shall be kept in the office of the Village Clerk a complete
record of each license issued to a driver, and of all renewals, suspensions
and revocations thereof, which record shall be kept on file with the
original application of the driver for a license.
A.
Every holder of a taxicab license shall at all times keep the inside
of the cab operated by him/her in a clean and sanitary condition and
shall at least once each day thoroughly clean the inside of such taxicab.
B.
No taxicab shall be operated for hire within the Village of Woodridge
unless the outside is kept in a clean condition, taking into account
the weather conditions, and of good appearance. As used herein, "good
appearance" shall mean that the vehicle is reasonably free of rust
and exterior damage which causes the vehicle to be unsightly.
