[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ridgefield 11-6-1974 by Ord. No. 992 as Ch. 53 of the 1967 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
No autobus, commonly called "jitney," shall be operated in the public streets or places of the Borough of Ridgefield unless the provisions of this chapter are complied with.
No autobus or buses, commonly called "jitneys," shall be operated in any of the public streets or places of the Borough of Ridgefield unless the owner or his or its lessee (who shall for the purposes of this chapter be considered the owner) operating such autobus or buses shall have procured a license in the manner herein provided and shall have paid the fee therefor.
Any person, firm or corporation desiring to operate an autobus or autobuses, commonly called "jitneys," in, over and through the public streets or places of the Borough of Ridgefield shall make an application in writing to the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ridgefield, which application shall state the name of the owner or person, firm or corporation intending to operate such autobus or buses; the residence and business address of such applicant; the number of buses which said applicant intends to operate within the Borough of Ridgefield; the seating capacity of each bus; the streets, avenues and public places upon which such buses will be operated; and an agreement to comply with the requirements contained in this chapter or any supplement or amendment thereof. Said application shall be accompanied by a license fee, which fee shall be as follows: for each bus or jitney, the sum of twenty-five dollars ($25.) per year.
No license hereunder shall become effective or remain in force, and no operation of any autobus under any such license shall be permitted, until the owner of such autobus shall have filed with the Borough Clerk an original insurance policy written by a company duly authorized and licensed to transact business under the insurance laws of the State of New Jersey in the sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000.) insuring the owner against loss from liability imposed by law upon the autobus owner for damages on account of bodily injury or death or property damage suffered by any person or persons as a result of the ownership, operation or use of such bus within the Borough of Ridgefield and providing that the liability under such policy shall be exclusively for damages sustained within the limits of the borough and further providing for the payment of any final judgment to be recovered by any person, firm or corporation against the owner or operator of such autobus growing out of the ownership, operation or use of such autobus within the limits of the borough and further providing that such insurance and the conditions of such policy shall be for the benefit of every person, firm or corporation suffering loss, damage or injury as aforesaid.
No license shall be issued until there shall have been filed with the Borough Clerk by the owner of such autobus a power of attorney wherein and whereby such owner shall constitute and appoint the Borough Clerk of the Borough of Ridgefield, for the time being, or his successors in office, as a true and lawful attorney of such owner for the purpose of receiving service of any process out of any court of competent jurisdiction against such owner with the same force and effect as though such service had been made upon such owner personally, if an individual, or upon an officer, director or registered agent thereof, if a corporation. Such power of attorney shall remain in force and effect so long as such owner shall operate, as owner, any autobus within the Borough of Ridgefield. The power of attorney herein provided for need not be filed as a condition precedent to the renewal of a license previously issued to the same owner.
[Amended 8-26-1991 by Ord. No. 1451]
Every person, firm or corporation operating any autobus or autobuses within the Borough of Ridgefield shall operate the same over a route or routes set forth by his or its application and over no other route or routes, except pursuant to permission of the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ridgefield, evidenced by a resolution duly adopted by said Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ridgefield; provided, however, that in case any portion of any such route shall be temporarily obstructed or closed to traffic, then in such case such autobus or buses may be operated upon such other street or streets or public places as to make a detour to the nearest open portion of such route, as directed by the Director of Public Works.
Every person, firm or corporation operating an autobus or autobuses within the Borough of Ridgefield shall, with the application herein provided for, file with the Borough Clerk a schedule showing the regular stopping places for taking on and letting off passengers within the borough; a schedule showing the time when such bus or buses will arrive at such stopping points; a statement of the entire route, both within and out of the borough, to be traveled by such autobus or buses; and a schedule showing the time when such bus or buses will leave their respective terminal of each route. The aforesaid schedule will be subject to change due to unforeseen causes and reasonable delays, but in no case shall any autobus leave any fixed stopping place before the time shown by such schedule. A copy of the time schedule shall be posted in a conspicuous place in each autobus. The time schedule may be changed upon ten (10) days' notice, in writing, which notice shall be filed with the Borough Clerk at least ten (10) days before such proposed change will take effect and shall also within the same time be published in a newspaper circulating within the Borough of Ridgefield.
There shall be posted in a conspicuous place in each autobus a statement of the rates of fare between the various points upon the routes of each bus.
No autobus shall stop within fifty (50) feet of any corner in the borough for the purpose of taking on or letting off passengers. All stops for taking on or letting off passengers at corners shall be on the near side of the intersecting streets.
Every autobus operated within the borough shall be equipped with pneumatic tires and shall have one (1) or more lights on the inside thereof which shall be kept lighted at all times from one (1) hour after sunset until daylight. Every such bus shall have a door at each end thereof.
Every autobus operated within the borough shall carry on the inside thereof in a rack or other place where it can be readily procured by the passengers an ax for use in case of emergency.
No driver of an autobus shall talk to or carry on a conversation with the passengers or any other person except to answer necessary questions.
[Amended 8-26-1991 by Ord. No. 1451]
Every autobus shall be operated carefully and within the speed limits provided for by law and shall be equipped with chains or other devices approved by the Director of Public Works to prevent skidding when necessary because of ice, snow or slippery condition of the streets.
No autobus shall be operated within the borough which shall carry more passengers than the number stated in the application for the license of such autobus, nor shall any passenger be permitted to stand on the steps of such autobus when the same is in motion.
[Amended 3-25-1985 by Ord. No. 1281; 6-28-2010 by Ord. No. 2133]
A. 
If this chapter of the Code of the Borough of Ridgefield provides for the licensing or permitting of the violator, the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ridgefield reserve the right to revoke such permit or license.
B. 
Any person found guilty of violating this chapter of the Code of the Borough of Ridgefield shall be subject to a penalty consisting of a fine or imprisonment, or both, subject to the discretion of the Judge, the maximum of which shall be the maximum fine or term of imprisonment permitted to be imposed by the court having jurisdiction over the violation of this chapter of the Code of the Borough of Ridgefield; provided, however, that the fine shall not be less than $100 nor more than $2,000 per offense and the prison term shall not exceed 90 days in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:49-5.
C. 
In the event of a continuing violation, each day shall constitute a separate offense.