[Amended 12-20-2010 by L.L. No. 19-2010]
A. 
Taxicab stands shall be established as provided for by Chapter 211, Vehicles and Traffic, § 211-18, of the Code of the City of Beacon. All vehicles when parked at the taxicab stand shall park within the designated parking area.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any owner of a taxicab or any holder of a taxicab license to cause or permit more than one taxicab to be stored or parked on any lot in any residential zoning district in the City of Beacon.
[Amended 5-20-2013 by L.L. No. 10-2013]
Not more than one taxi from one company may remain at a taxi stand located on any street within the City or on City-owned property to the exclusion of other taxicabs pointed in accordance with the traffic regulations. No taxicab standing at the head of any such line shall refuse to carry any orderly person applying for a taxicab who agrees to pay the proper rate of fare, but this shall not prevent any person from selecting any taxicab he may desire on the stand, whether it is at the head of the line or not. As the taxicabs leave the line with the passengers, those behind shall move up, and any taxicab seeking a place on the stand shall approach the same only from the rear of the stand and shall stop as near as possible to the last taxicab on the stand. No taxicab shall stand within eight feet of any crosswalk.
No person shall solicit passengers, except the driver of a taxicab, and then only when within arms' length of his vehicle. No taxicab while awaiting employment shall stand on any public street unless at a stand designated in accordance with this chapter.
A. 
Within 10 days of passage of this chapter, taxicab owners and/or operators shall file with the City Clerk rate cards which indicate a schedule of fees. Such rates and fees shall become the fixed rates and fees for the individual registrant and shall remain fixed. These rates and fees shall include zone maps, charges for local fares, waiting time, running time, charges for additional fare, extra stops in transit and additional fees for late-hour calls.
B. 
Rate cards shall be prominently displayed on the dash of each taxicab and shall be easily visible to passengers. The rate card shall be clearly maintained at all times. Any violation of such filings shall result in suspension of the taxicab license until the next filing, at which time the Police Chief shall determine whether the license shall be renewed. Any attempt to circumvent the intent of this chapter shall be deemed a violation thereof.
C. 
The fixed rates and rate cards as established above shall be in effect for a minimum period of four months. Any amendment to a rate card must be filed with the Police Chief a minimum of 10 days prior to the new rates going into effect.
A. 
Prepayment. Every driver of a taxicab shall have the right to demand payment of the legal fare in advance and may refuse employment unless so prepaid, but no driver of a taxicab shall otherwise refuse or neglect to convey any orderly person or persons upon request anywhere in the City unless previously engaged or unable to do so.
B. 
Disputed fares. All disputes as to fares shall be determined by the officer in charge of the police station; failure to comply with such determination shall subject the party offending to a violation of this chapter, punishable by a fine not exceeding $250, up to 15 days in jail, or both. Whenever a passenger asks for a receipt, it shall be given to him by the driver. Such receipt shall show the name of the driver, the name of the owner of the taxicab, the number of the taxicab, the time when the trip began and ended and the amount of fare collected.
C. 
Overcharge. No person shall charge or attempt to charge any passenger a greater rate of fare than that to which the taxicab is entitled under the provisions of this chapter.
D. 
The failure to operate a taxicab in the taxi business for a ninety-day period shall be deemed an abandonment, and the license shall be returned.
E. 
No person shall be allowed to ride on the seat with the driver except paying passengers, and any driver who shall permit this may be deprived of his license. It shall be the duty of all police officers to notify the Chief of Police of any violation of this provision.
Every driver of a taxicab, immediately after the termination of any hiring or employment, must carefully search such taxicab for any property lost or left therein, and any such property, unless sooner claimed or delivered to the owner, must be taken to the nearest police station and deposited with the officer in charge within 24 hours after the finding thereof.
A. 
No person owning or driving a taxicab shall deceive any passenger who may ride or who may desire to ride in any such vehicle as to his destination by the shortest route or the lawful price to be charged for such person, or shall convey such passenger or cause him to be conveyed to a place other than that directed by him.
B. 
Misrepresentation. No person owning or driving a taxicab shall misrepresent himself or the company for which he works to any passenger who rides or who may desire to ride in any such vehicle as to the taking of any person that has previously called or is going to call for another individual taxi or company, for transportation to a certain destination.
It shall be unlawful for any licensed driver of any taxicab to misrepresent the name of his employer, or knowingly to receive or transport any person or persons who intend any unlawful act in such vehicle during the voyage or at the termination thereof, whether within such vehicle or not. It shall also be unlawful for any such driver to solicit or procure or to aid or assist in soliciting or procuring any person to ride in a licensed taxicab with the intent to commit any unlawful act therein or at any time during the voyage or the termination thereof, whether within the vehicle or not. Any such actions shall be cause for the taxicab driver's license and/or taxicab license to be revoked as set forth in this chapter.
The provisions of this chapter shall have no application to taxicabs while in use at funerals, christenings or weddings and other religious ceremonies.
[Amended 5-20-2013 by L.L. No. 10-2013]
A. 
Any driver or taxicab owner violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a violation and may have all licenses granted pursuant to this chapter suspended or revoked, as determined by the Chief of Police, and shall be held liable for:
(1) 
A fine of $250 and/or up to 15 days' imprisonment for a first offense;
(2) 
A fine of $500 and/or up to 15 days' imprisonment for a second offense; and
(3) 
A fine of $750 and 15 days' imprisonment for a third and all subsequent offenses.
B. 
The Chief of Police may, in his discretion, temporarily suspend a license pending the prosecution of the licensee.
[Amended 5-20-2013 by L.L. No. 10-2013]
A. 
The City Administrator shall hear and decide appeals from and review any order, denial, suspension or revocation made by the Chief of Police or his designated agent with respect to a driver's or taxicab license as provided for herein.
B. 
Request for hearing. Upon the denial of an application, or the suspension or revocation of a license, the aggrieved party may, within 10 business days after receiving written notice, file a request, in writing, upon the City Administrator for review of said decision by the Chief of Police or his designated agent. Notice of the date, place and time of the hearing shall be given in writing by mail to the applicant, directed to the address appearing on the records of the Police Department for the licensee or applicant. In the event that demand for a hearing is not made within the prescribed time or in the event that the licensee or applicant does not timely appear for the hearing, the order of the Police Chief shall then be final and conclusive.
C. 
Hearings. Upon receipt of a request for a hearing as provided above, the City Administrator shall set a time and place for a hearing. The aggrieved party shall have the option of whether such hearing shall be public or private. The hearing shall commence no later than 30 days after the date on which the request was filed. Failure by the City Administrator to commence a hearing within 30 days shall not be deemed to constitute approval of such request if good and sufficient reason exists.
D. 
Findings. The aggrieved party shall be given an opportunity to present evidence why such denial of application, or such suspension or revocation of the license, shall be sustained, modified or withdrawn. The Chief of Police or his designated agent may also present evidence. Upon consideration of the evidence presented, the City Administrator shall sustain, modify or withdraw the decision of the Chief of Police or his designated agent. In the event the aggrieved party is not satisfied with the decision of the City Administrator, such aggrieved party may file an Article 78 proceeding under the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules, except that such Article 78 proceeding must be filed within 30 days of the filing of the City Administrator's decision with the City Clerk of the City of Beacon and service of the same upon the aggrieved party.