Source: https://ecode360.com/6425956
Timestamp: 2020-04-07 08:31:23
Document Index: 516729337

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 1640', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244', '§ 244']

Village of Ossining, NY Taxicabs
§ 244-1 Authority and enforceability.
§ 244-3 Taxicab driver's license required.
§ 244-4 Taxicab license required.
§ 244-5 Application for driver's license.
§ 244-6 Photograph of driver (displayed photo inside front and rear of taxi).
§ 244-7 Conviction records check; fingerprints.
§ 244-8 Medical examination.
§ 244-9 Issuance of driver license; temporary driver permits.
§ 244-10 Application for taxicab license.
§ 244-11 Conduct of taxicab operators at railroad station restricted.
§ 244-12 Inspection of taxis.
§ 244-13 General duties and requirements for owners of licensed vehicles.
§ 244-14 Taxicab license card.
§ 244-15 Fees.
§ 244-16 Rates of fare.
§ 244-17 Record of licenses.
§ 244-18 General operation regulations.
§ 244-19 Enforcement.
§ 244-20 Taxicab vehicle identification.
§ 244-21 Penalties for offenses.
§ 244-22 Severability.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Ossining 12-16-2003 by L.L. No. 11-2003.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
Editor's Note: This local law also provided for the repeal of former Ch. 244, Taxicabs, adopted 7-21-1981 by L.L. No. 5-1981, as amended.
Chapter 244 of the Village Code of the Village of Ossining is adopted pursuant to the authority of Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1640 as a local traffic regulation and shall be enforceable in the same manner as any other traffic law or regulation under the Vehicle and Traffic Law or the Codes of the Village of Ossining.
The operation of a taxicab upon Ossining streets when not employed by a passenger and, by words or actions, solicitation of prospective passengers for hire.
A taxicab except that such private livery cab shall not:
Be allowed to use taxi stands prescribed in Chapter 250 of the Village Code.
Any highway, street, alley, avenue, court, bridge, lane or public highway or any other public way in the Village.
The document granting permission by the Village to any person to drive a licensed taxicab upon the streets of Ossining.
No owner, lessee or franchisee of a taxicab which picks up passengers within the Village limits shall cause or permit such taxicab to be driven, operated or kept for hire or pay within the Village limits without first having procured a taxicab license for said taxicab and keeping the same in force and effect, under provisions of this chapter.
Any false statements by the applicant for a driver's license shall be promptly reported by the licensing official to the corporation counsel of the Village of Ossining. The licensing official is hereby authorized and empowered to require such additional information as he may deem necessary.
The Chief of Police shall request from the State Division of Criminal Justice Services and the State Division of Motor Vehicles record checks as to criminal and Vehicle and Traffic Law convictions for applicants for taxicab driver's licenses or applicants for renewal of taxicab driver's licenses to be issued by the Village. In connection thereto, every applicant for such licenses shall be fingerprinted by the Village of Ossining Police Department, under the supervision of the Chief of Police or his designee, which fingerprints shall be forwarded to the State Division of Criminal Justice Services by the Chief of Police for identification processing. The applicant will tender the usual fees as required by the Village's Fee Ordinance[1] for the taking of such fingerprints and shall pay the fee required by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, in the form prescribed by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services. Fingerprints and all appropriate processing fees shall be sent directly to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services by the Chief of Police. Only the Chief of Police or his designee may review the criminal history of the applicant. No license or renewal thereof shall issue, except a temporary license as provided in § 244-9, until the investigations as required herein shall be completed, except that an applicant shall be exempt from the provisions of this section if he has held taxicab driver's licenses from the Village for the five continuous years previous to application and the record checks conducted in said five years found no convictions against him during said period.
[Amended 6-1-2004 by L.L. No. 11-2004]
Editor’s Note: The Fee Ordinance is on file in the Village offices.
Reasons for license denial; suspension, cancellation, revocation and refusal to renew or issue a license. The Village Clerk and/or the Chief of Police may suspend, cancel or revoke a taxicab driver's or taxicab license and may refuse to approve an application for renewal thereof for any of the following reasons:
[Amended 1-20-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004; 11-15-2005 by L.L. No. 5-2005]
True ownership requirement. If the applicant is not the true owner of the vehicle or of the taxicab business.
Notice. Any suspension, cancellation or refusal to issue a license or to renew a license made hereunder shall be by written notice issued by the Village Clerk and/or the Chief of Police to the applicant or licensee who is entitled to demand a hearing, provided such demand is made in writing to the Village Clerk and/or the Chief of Police and such hearing shall be conducted within 10 business days after the imposition of such suspension or cancellation of a license hereunder if less then seven days’ prior notice thereof has been given. Where prior notice of at least seven days has been given with respect to a proposed suspension or cancellation of a license, a hearing shall be held within 15 business days after receipt of written demand.
Conduct of hearing. Upon receipt of a timely demand for a hearing, as provided above, the Chief of Police shall notify the office of the corporation counsel that such hearing has been demanded. The Chief of Police shall also transmit to the corporation counsel the documentation, application forms and a written statement of a reason for the revocation, suspension or denial of a taxicab driver's license or taxicab license. Within the time limits prescribed pursuant to § 244-6C(1) above, the corporation counsel, shall arrange for a hearing before a hearing officer, appointed by the corporation counsel, who shall not be a member or employee of the Village of Ossining Police Department. At such hearing, the licensing official shall present his reasons for the denial of the license in question, and the applicant whose license was denied, revoked or suspended shall be accorded every opportunity to bring forward all matters in his defense. An applicant shall be entitled to, but not be required to bring, counsel at any such hearing. Upon the conclusion of such hearing, the hearing officer shall make a binding determination of the licensing official. In the event the hearing officer shall reverse the revocation, denial or suspension in part, the hearing officer shall also provide such conditions as said hearing officer may deem reasonably appropriate. Any person aggrieved by a determination of the hearing officer, including the licensing official, shall have the right to challenge such determination pursuant to Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules of the State of New York.
[Amended 11-15-2005 by L.L. No. 5-2005]
Surrender of license. In the event of a suspension or cancellation as provided for herein of taxicab operator's or owner’s license, the holder thereof shall deliver the affected license of the Chief of Police within 24 hours of receipt of notice.
Each application shall be accompanied by a certificate from a physician duly licensed by the state certifying that he or she has examined the applicant within the thirty-day period prior to the filing of the application and that in the doctor’s opinion the applicant is not affected with any disease or physical or mental condition or infirmity which might make the applicant an unsafe or unsatisfactory driver of taxicab for hire.
The licensing official may, in his or her discretion, deny the issuance of a driver's license to an applicant whose application contains material false statements or whose health or previous criminal and Vehicle and Traffic Law conviction record would in his opinion endanger the general public or impair the applicant's ability to drive a taxicab. Such denial shall be in writing. Article 23-A of the New York State Corrections Law shall guide the licensing official in evaluating the applicant's conviction record, if any.
A temporary permit may be issued by the licensing official pending receipt of the official record check detailed in § 244-6 above. Such issuance shall be at the licensing official's sole discretion and upon his finding that the applicant would not endanger the general public by driving a taxicab in the Village. Such temporary permit shall in no event be granted for a longer period than 45 days and shall be nonrenewable, and a fee of $50 shall be charged for its issuance, which fee shall not be applied toward the annual licensing fee detailed in § 244-13 below.
Denial of license. If the results of any of the examinations are unsatisfactory in the opinion of the Village Clerk and/or the Chief of Police, the application shall be denied subject to the provisions hereof for hearings.
Whether the owner's license to operate a taxicab has ever been revoked in the Village or elsewhere and, if so, for what cause.
Such statement shall be signed and sworn to by the owner and filed with the licensing official as a permanent record.
The Chief of Police shall request from the State Division of Criminal Justice Services and the State Division of Motor Vehicles record checks as to criminal and Vehicle and Traffic Law convictions for applicants for taxicab licenses or applicants for renewal of taxicab licenses to be issued by the Village. In connection thereto, every applicant for such licenses shall be fingerprinted by the Village of Ossining Police Department, under the supervision of the Chief of Police or his designee, which fingerprints shall be forwarded to the State Division of Criminal Justice Services by the Chief of Police for identification processing. The applicant will tender the usual fees as required by the Village's Fee Ordinance[1] for the taking of such fingerprints and shall pay the fee required by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, in the form required by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services.. Fingerprints and all appropriate processing fees shall be sent directly to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services by the Chief of Police. Only the Chief of Police or his designee may review the criminal history of the applicant. No license or renewal thereof shall issue, except a temporary license as provided in § 244-9, until the investigations as required herein shall be completed, except that an applicant shall be exempt from the provisions of this section if he has held taxicab licenses from the Village for the five continuous years previous to application and the record checks conducted in said five years found no convictions against him during said period.
Any false statements by the owner for a taxicab license shall be promptly reported by the licensing official to the corporation counsel of the Village. The licensing official is hereby authorized and empowered to require such additional information as he may deem necessary.
Soliciting of patronage by taxicab operators at the railroad station on the approach thereto or in front thereof or upon the stairways within the limits of the subway exit from the station is forbidden. Taxicab operators are to remain in the areas designated for taxicab parking.
Taxicab operators may pick up passengers in front of the station only when the operator is specifically called by name for such purpose, and this right shall be limited to picking up the aged, infirm or other persons to whom the exit stairs offer difficulty. All other persons must be picked up in the taxicab area, as designated.
Not more than one taxicab from each organization to which a license to engage in the business of operating a taxicab has been issued shall be permitted to park or stand in the designated area while awaiting passengers. Such designated area shall be for active taxi parking or standing only.
Taxicab operators may not enter the station, stairs, the subway or go to the platform of the station for luggage unless specifically called for such purpose by a passenger. When so called, the taxicab operator must wait until other passengers have departed from the stairs, subway or station, and the operator shall not, in entering or leaving the station exit, platform or stairs to pick up such luggage, unreasonably interfere with the use of such facilities by other persons.
Taxicabs authorized to use the area designated for taxicab parking at the railroad station are required to name the Village of Ossining as an additional insured on the vehicle and owner's automobile insurance policy.
[Added 11-15-2005 by L.L. No. 5-2005]
The Village Clerk and/or the Chief of Police of Ossining is hereby empowered to designate not more than two official inspection stations (which shall be designated New York State inspection stations) in the Village of Ossining for the purposes of this chapter of the Village Code.
In addition to the prelicensing inspection, it shall be the responsibility of each owner and driver of a taxi applying for or licensed in the Village of Ossining to cause such vehicle to be inspected by a designated inspection station at intervals of not more than six months.
A copy of the inspection report shall be given to the vehicle owner and the Chief of Police at the completion of the inspection.
The Inspection of the Taxis shall include, but not be limited to, a review of the following:
Repair work which is required after inspection of a taxi must be completed within 10 days of the inspection, and satisfactory proof of repair shall be presented to the Chief of Police. Failure to make necessary repairs and to present satisfactory proof may be a ground for suspension of an owner's license.
Upon receipt of a report from any designated inspection station which finds a taxi to be unfit or unsuited for public patronage or which shall fail to comply with the requirements of this chapter, the licensing official shall refuse a license, or shall revoke or suspend the license previously issued.
Upon being issued a Village of Ossining taxi inspection sticker, the taxi owner will affix the sticker by placing it on the driver's side door of the vehicle where it shall be available for inspection by any member of the Ossining Police Department at all times while said vehicle is licensed within the Village of Ossining.
Every licensed vehicle shall be kept mechanically fit, keep the interior and exterior in a clean and sanitary condition and shall at all times bear a current New York State inspection sticker and Village of Ossining inspection sticker.
Maintain and furnish a current list of driver employees to the Chief of Police.
Provide a letter to the Chief of Police upon the discharge or termination for any reason of a driver/employee.
Promptly report to the Chief of Police the transfer of ownership of any vehicle licensed by the Village and concurrently turn in to the Chief the taxicab license for use of such vehicle.
Maintain proper vehicle insurance for all owned or operated taxis in accordance with the New York State Motor Vehicle Law and report a revocation or cancellation of insurance immediately to the Chief of Police.
Upon meeting the inspection requirements set forth in §§ 244-12 and 244-13 hereof, a taxicab shall be licensed by delivering to the owner thereof a card of such size and form as may be prescribed by the licensing official. The card shall contain the official license number of the taxicab, together with the date of inspection and six months' reinspection of same and a statement to the effect that, in case of any complaints, the licensing official shall be notified, giving the license number of the taxicab. Such card shall be signed by the licensing official and shall contain blank spaces upon which an entry shall be made of the date of every inspection of the vehicle by the licensing official or his representation. The license number assigned hereunder shall, in each case, be the same as that assigned to the vehicle for that year, pursuant to law. Such license card shall be prominently displayed in the taxicab at all times so as to be visible to all passengers riding in the taxicab.
§ 244-15 Fees. [1]
[Amended 1-20-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004; 12-16-2008 by L.L. No. 8-2008]
The semiannual fee for inspection of taxicabs shall be set from time to time by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees for each such inspection, which shall be paid directly to the inspection station. In addition, the administrative fee for the issuance of the appropriate sticker shall be set from time to time by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees, to be paid to the Police Department of the Village of Ossining upon issuance of said sticker.
[Amended 12-16-2008 by L.L. No. 8-2008]
[Amended 11-15-2005 by L.L. No. 5-2005; 12-16-2008 by L.L. No. 8-2008]
First passenger from any point having its origin within the Village of Ossining to any point having its destination within the Village of Ossining: as set from time to time by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees.
Each additional passenger going from the same point of origin to the same point of destination as first passenger: as set from time to time by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees. (One child five years of age or under will ride free if accompanied by an adult passenger.)[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Subsection A(3), regarding senior citizens, was repealed 1-20-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004. Said ordinance also provided for the redesignation of Subsection A(4) through (8) as Subsection A(3) through (7), respectively.
Out-of-town trips. If the taxicab is engaged for an out-of-town trip originating or terminating in Ossining, the operator of the taxicab shall agree with the passenger prior to the commencement of the trip for the rate to be charged, which shall include all tolls to be paid.
Fare rate is to be displayed on right and left rear doors.
Every person while operating a taxi vehicle licensed pursuant to this chapter:
Shall not refuse or neglect to convey any orderly person or persons upon request anywhere in Ossining. No taxicab driver shall carry any other person than the passenger first employing a taxicab without the consent of such first passenger.
Shall keep the interior and exterior of the same in clean and sanitary condition and shall at all times maintain the taxicab in compliance with the requirements of § 244-13 hereof of this chapter.
Shall not smoke at any time. Taxis are to be smoke-free, subject to a fine of $50 for each violation.
Shall at all times, while on duty, have displayed in the interior of the vehicle which he is operating, his taxicab driver’s license displayed in a place visible to any passenger in such taxicab usually on the passenger visor.
Shall be required to be neat in dress and appearance at all times when on duty, and in the event a driver's appearance changes substantially, provide the Chief of Police with a new photograph and shall accompany such photograph with an application fee of $25 for a replacement license.
Shall report to the police any unlawful act connected with his vehicle or any attempt to use his vehicle to commit a crime or escape from the scene of a crime.
Shall not permit any passenger in the taxicab except a paying fare during such time as the taxi is being used for business purposes, except for not more than one driver trainee.
Shall not cruise within Ossining seeking passengers nor make any personal solicitation on any street or other public place for passengers to ride or hire any particular taxicab. Taxis shall not stand on any public street or place other than at or upon a taxicab stand designated by the Village.
No vehicle may be licensed as a taxicab in the Village of Ossining unless same is of the type known commonly as a four-door sedan or is a station wagon or suburban vehicle with at least four doors. Under no circumstances shall any vehicle be licensed as a taxicab which has only two doors for the use of occupants, including the driver.
No vehicle shall display commercial advertising, except for a rootop sign.
It shall be the duty of all police officers of the Village of Ossining to enforce the provisions of this chapter.
The taxi owner/company name, taxi number and Ossining, New York, shall be printed on both front doors of each taxi owned.
The signs must contain lettering not less than three inches in height and three inches in width with a quarter-inch paint stroke in a color contrasting to the door color to be readable during operation when the taxi is likely to be used.
Each taxi will display a Village-issued decal/medallion on right and left rear windows at the bottom rear-most point.
Any person not having been duly licensed as a taxicab driver, or any person whose license has been suspended, and who, during the term of suspension, drives for hire a taxicab upon the Ossining streets, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than $100 and of not more than $500 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
Suspension and revocation of license. In addition to the fine or imprisonment, or both, authorized by this chapter, any licensee shall be subject to the suspension or revocation of his license upon conviction for any violation of this chapter. The Village Judge may suspend or revoke a license granted under any provision of this chapter, pending or in advance of criminal prosecution of the licensee.
In the event any provision of this chapter shall be ruled invalid by a Court of competent jurisdiction, the provision shall be stricken and the remainder of this chapter shall remain in full force and effect as if said provision were not included herein.