DIVISION 1
Generally
When a business license has been issued or renewed and the prescribed fee paid therefor, the vehicle for hire owner shall forthwith obtain from the City Clerk a vehicle license for each vehicle for hire, other than taxicabs, which is to be operated under said business license. The vehicle license shall be furnished by the City, upon compliance with the requirements of this chapter, for use during the period for which the business license has been issued or renewed. Any vehicle license issued under this section shall at all times be maintained in the vehicle for hire for which it was issued and shall be presented to any officer of the Department of Public Safety upon request. The City Clerk, prior to issuing a vehicle license under this section, shall obtain from the owner the make, model, year, and color of the vehicle for which the vehicle license is sought, its state motor vehicle license number and its vehicle identification number.
A. 
The owner of every vehicle for hire shall, before operating the same on the public streets of the City, take out a liability insurance policy in some responsible insurance company authorized to transact business in the state, insuring such owner against liability for personal injury to a passenger in such vehicle for hire, or to a member of the general public, resulting from an accident in which such vehicle for hire may become involved, through the recklessness or negligence of its owner or operator, as well as against damage to property resulting from such accident. Such policy shall contain a provision that the same may not be canceled by the company issuing it, without first giving the City Clerk 10 days' written notice of such intended cancellation. Such policy, or a certificate thereof, shall be filed with the City Clerk.
B. 
The minimum insurance required to be taken out for each vehicle for hire shall be in such types and amounts as may be set from time to time by resolution of the City Commission.
[Amended 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any vehicle for hire owner to cause or allow a vehicle for hire to be operated if it is not in full compliance with the requirements of Chapter 36 of this code and the provisions of the State Motor Vehicle Code. In addition, each vehicle for hire shall conform to the following:
(1) 
All vehicles for hire shall have at least four doors, all of which shall be lockable from the inside; both the passenger compartment and the driver compartment of said vehicle must be accessible from the outside by at least two of the four doors.
(2) 
Every vehicle for hire shall be equipped with a working heater.
(3) 
Every vehicle for hire shall be equipped with a speedometer properly installed, maintained in good working order and exposed to view. No vehicle for hire shall be operated, by an owner or his or her agent, while such speedometer is out of repair or disconnected, absent the permission of the Chief of Public Safety.
(4) 
Every vehicle for hire shall be provided with snow tires for use on the two rear wheels or all-weather radial tires when pavement conditions are such as to require their use for the safety of the driver, passengers and the general public.
[Amended 8-12-1985 by Ord. No. 1354; 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623; 7-16-2004 by Ord. No. 1775]
Prior to the issuance of a license for a vehicle for hire, that vehicle must have been thoroughly inspected within the past 15 days by an automobile mechanic licensed by the State of Michigan. The applicant must present to the City a certificate from the mechanic who performed the inspection certifying that the vehicle is in full compliance with all relevant requirements of the Michigan Vehicle Code. The certificate may be on a form approved by the City. It shall be unlawful for an applicant to submit a fraudulent documentation certifying compliance with the Michigan Vehicle Code, and it shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly make a false statement, written or otherwise, concerning such compliance.
[Amended 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
Every vehicle for hire owner shall keep accurate records of receipts from operations and operating and other expenses, capital expenditures, and such other operating information as may be required by this chapter. Such records shall be readily accessible for examination and provided to a designated officer of the Department of Public Safety or the City Manager upon request.
[Amended 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
Every vehicle for hire owner shall regularly inspect and maintain each said vehicle to ensure that each said vehicle is in a safe, clean and sanitary condition.
No owner or driver of a vehicle for hire shall cause or permit such vehicle for hire to be operated along routes in a manner similar to that of mass transportation vehicles operating along definite routes or between specific termini.
[Amended 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
Any person hiring a vehicle for hire may have the sole use of such vehicle for hire, and no other person shall be admitted, unless the permission of the first person hiring the vehicle for hire is obtained.
When a vehicle for hire driver finds any article left by a passenger and deposits it with the owner, as required by § 37-101, the owner shall report the finding and deposit of said article to Public Safety Department personnel in the information center of the Department of Public Safety within 24 hours.
DIVISION 2
Taxicab Licensing and Operating Requirements
A. 
When a business license has been issued or renewed and the prescribed fee paid, the vehicle for hire owner shall forthwith obtain from the City Clerk a license tag for each taxicab operated under said business license. The license tag shall be furnished by the City, upon compliance with the requirements of this chapter, for use during the period for which the business license has been issued or renewed. The license tag shall at all times be affixed to the lower left corner of the rear window of the taxicab for which it is issued.
B. 
The license tag shall be so attached as to be plainly visible at all times. The City Clerk, prior to issuing a license tag under this section, shall obtain from the owner the make, model, year and color of the vehicle for which the license tag is sought, its state motor vehicle license number and its vehicle identification number.
A. 
Every taxicab operated in the City shall be constructed as required by § 37-32 and in addition shall conform to the following:
(1) 
Every taxicab shall be equipped with a taximeter properly installed, maintained in good working order and exposed to view. No taxicab shall be operated by an owner or driver while such taximeter is out of repair or disconnected, absent the permission of the Chief of Public Safety.
(2) 
Every taxicab shall be equipped with a card frame, furnished by the owner, for the proper display of the driver's identification card. The card frame shall be placed in the front of the taxicab and shall face the passenger and be so located as to be, at all times, in plain view of such passenger.
[Amended 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
Each taxicab shall bear on the outside of each rear door, in letters not less than two inches nor more than six inches in height, the name of the licensee; in addition each taxicab shall bear in two separate places its own identifying numbers (which shall be not less than two inches nor more than six inches in height).
No holder of a business license for the operation of a taxicab shall charge any rate of fare greater than any maximum metered rate of fare that the City Commission may from time-to-time establish by resolution or motion.
Any passenger or party of passengers shall be entitled to a waiting period without charge not exceeding three minutes from the time the taxicab arrives at the point of origin until the passenger or party of passengers enters the taxicab. Each passenger or party of passengers may be charged such amount for additional waiting time or stops en route as the City Commission from time-to-time may establish by resolution or motion. No taxicab shall be operated on any hourly rental or rate basis except as permitted by use of the waiting time procedures herein established.
Owners of taxicabs shall furnish an appropriate rate card for each taxicab. Such rate card shall be affixed to each taxicab in such a manner as to be visible from the passenger compartment. No person shall alter, deface or remove such rate card.
[Added 8-5-1991 by Ord. No. 1516; amended 5-18-1998 by Ord. No. 1654]
To enable the public to identify a licensee's taxicabs and to readily distinguish them from the taxicabs of other licensees, the color scheme and insignia or trademarks of all taxicabs of each licensee shall be uniform and distinct. Each color scheme and insignia or trademark shall be registered with the City Clerk prior to use. Taxicabs shall be marked only with name and color scheme as designated on the trademark.
[Added 9-30-1996 by Ord. No. 1623]
When the owner of a vehicle for hire is something other than a natural person, the duties and prohibitions imposed in this chapter upon an owner shall also be imposed upon those persons involved, in a decision-making capacity, in the day-to-day management of a vehicle for hire business.