[Amended 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
No person shall drive or move, nor shall any person, being the owner of a vehicle, knowingly permit to be driven or moved upon any street any vehicle, of a type required to be registered, which is not registered and for which current registration plates have not been issued as provided pursuant to the laws of Delaware or pursuant to the laws of the home state or country of the owner, or for which the appropriate fees have not been paid when as required for a vehicle, the same may be operated temporarily pending complete registration upon displaying a duplicate application duly verified or other evidence of such application or otherwise under rules and regulations promulgated by the Department of Motor Vehicles.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
Every owner of a motor vehicle, trailer or other vehicle shall, within 60 days after taking up residence in the State of Delaware, apply to the Secretary and obtain registration for the vehicle.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
The registration card issued for a vehicle required to be registered under 21 Del. C., shall at all times, while the vehicle is being operated upon a street within this City, be in the possession of the operator thereof or carried in the vehicle and subject to inspection by any peace officer. However, an operator shall be allowed 24 hours to produce the registration card before a conviction can be obtained under this provision, such registration having been legally issued at a time prior to such operator's arrest.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
No person shall:
A. 
Operate or, being the owner of any motor vehicle, trailer or semitrailer; knowingly permit the operation upon a highway of any motor vehicle, trailer or semitrailer which is not registered or which does not have attached thereto and displayed thereon the number plate or unexpired registration plate or plates, subject to the exemptions allowed in 21 Del. C., or under temporary or limited permits as otherwise provide by 21 Del. C.
B. 
Display or cause or permit to be displayed or have in possession any registration card, number plate or registration plate, knowing the same to be fictitious or to have been cancelled, revoked, suspended or altered.
C. 
Lend to, or knowingly permit the use by, one not entitled thereto any registration card, number plate or registration plate issued to the person so lending or permitting the use thereof.
D. 
Fail or refuse to surrender to the Department of Motor Vehicles upon demand any registration card, number plate or registration plate which has been suspended, cancelled or revoked as provided in 21 Del. C.
E. 
Drive or move or, being the owner, cause or knowingly permit to be driven or moved, on any highway any vehicle or combination of vehicles which is in such unsafe condition as to endanger any person or which is equipped in any manner in violation of 21 Del. C.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02; amended 3-28-2009 by Ord. No. 0309-02; 2-16-2024 by Ord. No. 0224-03; 11-21-2025 by Ord. No. 1125-02]
A. 
No owner of a motor vehicle required to be registered in Delaware, other than a self-insurer pursuant to 21 Del. C. § 2904, shall operate or authorize any other person to operate such vehicle unless the owner has insurance on such motor vehicle.
B. 
The insurance identification card issued for a vehicle required to be registered under 21 Del. C., shall at all times, while the vehicle is being operated upon a street within this City, be in the possession of the operator thereof or carried in the vehicle and shall be produced upon the request of a police officer or alderman or any other party involved in an accident with the insured.
C. 
Any person who violates this section shall, for the first offense, be fined as established in the City Schedule of Fees and Penalties.[1] Concurrently with, or subsequent to, any violation of this section, the Delaware Department of Transportation may suspend the offender’s driving license and/or privileges pursuant to 21 Del. C. § 2118. For each subsequent offense occurring within three years of a former offense, that person shall be fined as established in the City Schedule of Fees and Penalties.
[1]
Editor's Note: The City Schedule of Fees and Penalties is on file in the City offices.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
A. 
The number plate assigned to a motor vehicle shall at all times be attached to the rear of the motor vehicle, except truck tractors attached to trailers or semitrailers, whether coupled or uncoupled, shall display the number plate on the front of the vehicle in such a manner as to be easily identified. Such number plates shall meet the requirements of Subsection B of this section. Special license plates may be displayed on the front or rear of the vehicle. The regular numbered plate assigned to the vehicle or a duplicate special license plate furnished under 21 Del. C. § 2121(h) must be displayed on the vehicle rear when the special plate is displayed on the front of the vehicle.
B. 
Every number plate shall at all times be securely fastened to the vehicle to which it is assigned so as to prevent the plate from swinging and at a height not less than 12 inches from the ground, measuring from the bottom of such plate, in a place and position to be clearly visible, and shall be maintained free from foreign materials and in a condition to be clearly legible.
C. 
No number plate, or any portion thereof, shall be covered with any tinted material, nor shall any other material be placed on or around a number plate which would conceal and/or obscure any information contained thereon, including the registration expiration sticker. Plate frames that do not conceal and/or obscure any information contained on the plate, including the registration expiration sticker, are not prohibited by this section.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
A. 
No person shall insert any false information upon the face of a temporary registration plate.
B. 
No person shall operate any vehicle bearing a temporary registration plate which is invalid or expired.
C. 
Upon the expiration of a temporary registration plate the holder thereof shall immediately destroy the same.
[Amended 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02; 3-28-2009 by Ord. No. 0309-02; 11-21-2025 by Ord. No. 1125-02]
A. 
No person shall drive a motor vehicle upon any street within the corporate limits of the City without having been licensed as an operator pursuant to the laws of the State of Delaware or pursuant to the laws of the home state or country of the operator. Any person who violates this section shall be fined as established in the City Schedule of Fees and Penalties,[1] and shall pay the costs of prosecution. A subsequent violation, before being punishable as such, shall have been committed within 24 months after the commission of the prior offense.
[1]
Editor's Note: The City Schedule of Fees and Penalties is on file in the City offices.
B. 
No person whose operator's license or driving privileges have been suspended or revoked pursuant to the laws of the State of Delaware shall drive any motor vehicle upon any street within the corporate limits of the City during the period of suspension or revocation. Any person who violates this subsection shall be fined as established in the City Schedule of Fees and Penalties, and shall pay the costs of prosecution. A subsequent violation, before being punishable as such, shall have been committed within 24 months after the commission of the prior offense.
C. 
No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a public street of this City after serving a period of suspension, revocation or license denial, without first having obtained a valid license through proper reinstatement procedures as prescribed by 21 Del. C. Any person who violates this section shall be fined as established in the City Schedule of Fees and Penalties, and shall pay the costs of prosecution. A subsequent violation, before being punishable as such, shall have been committed within 24 months after the commission of the prior offense.
D. 
Any person whose license and/or driving privileges has been suspended/revoked or disqualified shall pay a fee established by the Department of Motor Vehicles at the end of such suspension/revocation or disqualification for the return of the person's license and/or the reinstatement of the person's driving privileges.
E. 
No person shall drive on a public street of this City, a motor vehicle of a class or type for which the person has not been duly licensed.
F. 
Every person desiring to operate a motor vehicle on a public street of this City shall, within 60 days after taking up residence in Delaware, apply to the Department of Motor Vehicles and obtain the proper license.
G. 
No person whose license has expired shall drive a motor vehicle on a public street of the City.
H. 
Every person licensed as an operator shall write the person's usual signature with pen and ink in the spaces provided for that purpose on the license certificate and such license shall not be valid until the certificate is so signed.
I. 
The licensee shall have such license in the licensee's immediate possession at all times when driving a motor vehicle and shall display the same upon demand of a uniformed police officer, alderman, or motor vehicle inspector.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
No person shall operate a motorcycle, motorbike, or other two-wheeled, motor-driven vehicle upon a street of this City without having been properly licensed and having passed, to the satisfaction of the Department of Motor Vehicles, an examination testing the person's ability to operate such vehicle safely.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
No person shall drive any taxicab upon any street of this City unless such person, upon application, has been licensed as a taxicab operator by the Department of Motor Vehicles under 21 Del. C.
[Added 7-21-2008 by Ord. No. 0708-02]
A. 
A person shall not possess or display, cause or permit to be displayed, any revoked or suspended license.
B. 
A person shall not possess or display, cause or permit to be displayed, any fictitious license or identification card.
C. 
A person shall not possess or display, cause or permit to be displayed, any altered license or identification card.
D. 
A person shall not lend that person's license to any other person or permit the use of that license by another.
E. 
A person shall not display or represent as that person's own any license or identification card not issued to that person.