Cupertino Municipal Code Ch. 5.28 Taxicabs

For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:

A. “Taxicab” means a motor vehicle regularly engaged in the business of carrying passengers for hire, equipped with a taximeter, having a seating capacity of five or less persons, excluding the driver, and not operated on a fixed route.

B. “Taximeter” means a meter instrument or device attached to a taxicab which measures mechanically the distance driven and the waiting time upon which the fare is based and registers the amount of the fare in such a manner as to permit the passenger to see said amount.

C. “Waiting time” means the time when a taxicab is not in motion from the time of acceptance of a passenger to the time of discharge, not including any time that the taxicab is not in motion due to any cause other than the request, act or fault of a passenger.

D. “Owner” is any person, firm, association or corporation engaged in the City of Cupertino in the business of operating a taxicab.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

There is hereby conferred upon the City Manager those powers and duties necessary for the administration of this chapter. In addition, there is also conferred upon the City Manager the authority and power to designate such officers and employees of the City, and of other cooperating public agencies, such as the Sheriff’s office, to assist him in carrying out the intent and purpose of this chapter.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

All taxicabs shall be operated on a mileage and waiting time basis, and shall be equipped with a taximeter.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

All owners or operators of taxicabs shall adopt uniform and reasonable schedules of charges for use of taxicabs; based upon the distance traveled or waiting time, or both, as may be indicated by such taximeter, which schedule of fares shall be filed from time to time with the City Manager, or his designated representative, and shall be reviewed and approved by the City Council before being put into effect. No owner or operator shall charge or receive any other or different fare for the use of such taxicabs than that specified in such fare schedule and so recorded by such taximeter. Such fare shall not be amended except with the consent of the City Council.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

No taxicab shall be operated in the City unless such taxicab is equipped with a taximeter as herein provided, and the owner and operator shall keep such meter operating at all times within such standard of accuracy as may be prescribed by the City Manager, or his designated representative. No passenger shall be carried in any such taxicab unless such taximeter shall be in operation.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

All owners and operators shall designate a separate number for each taxicab to be operated under the permit. The number shall be placed conspicuously and uniformly on each taxicab so as to be clearly visible at all times.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995)

All owners and operators shall keep posted in a conspicuous place, and in a permanent and secure manner in the passenger compartment of each taxicab, the schedule of fare chargeable for the use of the taxicab, and no owner or operator shall change the schedule of fares so posted unless a new schedule of fares has been filed and approved in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

It is unlawful to operate any taxicab in the City unless the owner thereof applies for, and obtains a permit to do so, which permit shall be applied for, granted, and in effect, all in compliance with the provisions of Section 5.28.070.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

The application for such owner’s permit shall be verified under oath and shall set forth:

A. A full identification of the applicant and all persons to be directly or indirectly interested in the license, if granted;

B. The residence and business address and the citizenship of the applicant, including all members of any firm, or partnership, or all officers and directors of any corporation applying;

C. The location of the proposed business for which the permit is requested, and the name of the owner and the present use of such premises;

D. The exact nature of the proposed business for which the permit is requested, and the name under which it is to be operated;

E. The past experience of the applicant in the matter to which the requested permit appertains; and the name, address, and past experience of the person to be in charge of the premises or business;

F. Whether or not any permit, license or franchise has been revoked and, if so, the circumstances of such revocation;

G. The number of vehicles proposed to be operated including a complete description of each vehicle including the year, model, serial number and license number;

H. A complete description of the proposed operations including a schedule of rates to be charged;

I. The color scheme and characteristic insignia to be used to designate the vehicles of the owner;

J. A statement from a responsible solvent corporation authorized to issue public liability and property damage insurance in the State, and that in the event the application is granted, that it will issue a policy of insurance to the applicant in the manner and form required by this chapter;

K. An agreement that in the event the application is granted, that applicant will keep in operation not less than one-third of the number of taxicabs for which a license has been granted each day, from midnight to six a.m.; not less than one-half of the number of taxicabs for which a license has been granted each day from six am. to eight p.m.; and not less than one-third of the number of taxicabs for which a license has been granted each day from eight p.m. to midnight. Each application must be for a minimum of not less than three taxicabs;

L. An agreement whereby the applicant agrees that he will maintain on the premises of his principal place of business, in operating order, at all times, at least one telephone for every eight taxicabs, and that at all times there will be an operator in charge of said phone or phones, who shall devote himself exclusively to answering said phones and dispatching taxicabs in response to requests therefor;

M. A sworn financial statement of the applicant;

N. Evidence of enrollment in a mandatory controlled substance and alcohol testing certification program for all drivers with Cupertino listed as a notified party;

O. Such further information as the City Manager or designee may require.

The applicant may meet the requirements of this section by filing with the City Manager, or his designated representative, a copy of any applications filed with any other California jurisdiction requiring substantially the same information as required by this section.

(Ord. 1822, (part), 1999; Ord. 1722, (part), 1996; Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

The City Manager shall deny an owner’s permit to any applicant if it appears to his satisfaction that such vehicle proposed to be operated is inadequate or unsafe; that the applicant has been convicted of a felony or violation of any narcotic law or of any penal law involving moral turpitude; that the applicant’s proposed color scheme or other insignia will tend to confuse the identification of the vehicles proposed to be operated by such applicant with those of another owner operating in the City; or that the applicant has failed to provide the necessary information required in Section 5.28.070.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

The permit issued under this chapter shall be for a term of two years. At the expiration of the term, unless a new permit is issued under the provisions of this chapter, or unless the City Council, for good cause, extends the term of the original permit for a period not to exceed two years, the permit shall be deemed to have expired and shall no longer be valid.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

The City Manager may revoke or suspend any owner’s permit to operate a taxicab or taxicabs on the following grounds:

A. Violation by the permittee, or his agents, of any of the provisions of this chapter or any ordinances relating to traffic or use of streets;

B. Failure of the permittee, or his agents, to pay judgment for damages arising from the unlawful or negligent operation of the taxicab or taxicabs for which the permit was issued;

C. A finding that any taxicab operated by the permittee, or his agents, within the city is inadequate or unsafe;

D. The permittee, or his agent, has been convicted of a felony or violation of any narcotic law or of any criminal violation involving moral turpitude;

E. Failure of the permittee, or his agents, to comply with a mandatory controlled substance and alcohol testing certification program as provided for in Section 53075.5 of the California Government Code.

(Ord. 1722, (part), 1996; Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Any owner holding a permit to operate one or more taxicabs as provided in this chapter, who desires to add to the number of such vehicles shall do so only upon obtaining from the City Manager permission therefor, which shall be granted only upon application made in the same manner and under the same proceedings as are required in this chapter in the instance of obtaining the original permit. Any owner holding a permit to operate one or more taxicabs as provided in this chapter, who desires to substitute a different vehicle for a vehicle operated under such permit, shall do so only upon obtaining, from the City Manager, permission therefor, which shall be granted only upon written application setting forth the particulars of such proposed substitution, and upon otherwise complying with the requirements of this chapter. The City Manager shall have the same authority in granting or denying such application for permission to add or substitute as is in this chapter vested in him in the matter of original application.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

It is unlawful for any owner to drive or operate, or cause or permit to be driven or operated, any public motor vehicle in the City, unless such owner has placed on file with the City Manager, or his designated representative, a written certificate or certificates of a responsible and solvent individual authorized to issue such policy under the laws of the State of California, that it has issued to or for the benefit of the owner, a motor vehicle liability policy or policies which, at the date of said certificate or certificates, are in full force and effect, and designating therein that any and all public motor vehicles which may be driven or operated under any permit granted to such owner under the provisions of this chapter are, or will be, covered under said policy or policies.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

A. The motor vehicle liability policy required under the provisions of Section 5.28.120 shall insure the owner, as defined in Section 5.28.010, and any other person using or responsible for the use of any such vehicle with the consent, express or implied, of such owner, against loss from the liability imposed upon an owner by law for injury to, or death of, any person, or damage to property, growing out of the maintenance, operation or ownership of any public motor vehicle to the amount or limit of one hundred thousand dollars, exclusive of interest and costs, on account of injury to, or death of any one person, of three hundred thousand dollars, exclusive of interest and costs, on account of any one accident resulting in injury to, or death of more than one person, and of fifty thousand dollars for damage to property of others, resulting from any one accident.

B. The motor vehicle liability policy shall inure to the benefit of any and all persons, suffering loss or damage either to person or property, as herein provided, and the liability of the insurance carrier shall be in no manner abrogated or abated by the death of the tort-feasor and/or the owner.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Every certificate required under the provisions of Section 5.28.120 of this chapter shall certify that the motor vehicle liability policy or policies therein cited shall not be canceled except upon ten days’ prior written notice thereof to the City Clerk. Said motor vehicle liability insurance shall be a continuing liability up to the full amount thereof, notwithstanding any recovery thereon, and said certificates thereof shall so certify. All motor vehicle liability policies and all certificates thereof shall be subject to the approval of the City Attorney and the City Manager, or his designated representative, in any and all matters and if at any time, in the judgment of the City Manager, or his designated representative, said motor vehicle liability policies are not sufficient for any cause, said City Manager, or his designated representative, may require the owner of such public motor vehicle who filed the same to replace said motor vehicle policies within ten days with other policies in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. If said owner fails to replace said motor vehicle policies within said ten-day period with good and sufficient policies, as aforesaid, then at the termination of said period the owner’s permit issued hereunder shall be by such failure automatically suspended until such time as said requirement is complied with, and the City Manager, or his designated representative, shall enforce such suspension.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

A. Subject to the approval of the City Manager, or his designated representative, the owner of any taxicab or taxicabs, operated under the provisions of this chapter, may file a bond of responsible and solvent individual authorized to issue such bonds under the laws of the State of California, containing the conditions, and giving the protection required in the motor vehicle liability policy required by Sections 5.28.120 through 5.28.140, in lieu of either, all or any part of the insurance coverage required by said sections.

B. In the event of the filing of a bond under the provisions of this section, the applicable provisions of said Sections 5.28.120 through 5.28.140 shall govern the furnishing of such bond and the owner filing it.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

It is unlawful for any driver to operate any taxicab in the City unless there exists a valid permit so to do as herein provided. Application for such driver’s permit shall be made to the City Manager, or his designated representative, shall be in writing and in duplicate, and the original thereof shall be duly acknowledged before some person lawfully authorized to administer oaths. Such original shall be forthwith transmitted to the City Manager, or his designated representative. Said application shall set forth the name, age and address of the applicant, his past experience in operating automobiles, the names and addresses of his employers during the preceding period of three years, whether or not a chauffeur’s license issued to him by the State of California, or any state or governmental agency has ever been revoked, the name and address of the owner by whom he is to be employed as a driver (which said owner shall endorse the said application), and such additional information as the City Manager, or his designated representative, may require.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Upon application for a driver’s permit, and before it is issued, the driver, whether the owner or otherwise, must:

A. Evidence a proficient knowledge of the traffic laws of the City and of the State, and demonstrate his ability to operate a taxicab, all to the satisfaction of the City Manager, or his designated representative;

B. Be fingerprinted by and his record filed in the Police Department Bureau of Identification;

C. File with his application two recent photographs (size one and one-half by one and one-half inch), one to be filed with his application and one to be permanently attached to his driver’s permit when issued, which permit shall be posted in a place conspicuous from the passenger’s compartment of the taxicab while the driver is operating the taxicab;

D. File with his application a copy of his current drivers license issued by the State of California;

E. Have on file with the City certification from employer of a current negative test for alcohol and for each of the controlled substances specified in Part 40 (commencing with Section 40.1) of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations. (A “negative test for alcohol” means an alcohol screening test showing a breath alcohol concentration of less than 0.02 percent.) Self-employed independent drivers shall have test results reported directly to the City Manager from the testing agency.

The applicant may meet the requirements of this section by filing with the City Manager, or his designated representative, a copy of any application filed with any other California jurisdiction requiring substantially the same information as required by this section.

(Ord. 1822, (part), 1999; Ord. 1722, (part), 1996; Ord. 1705, (part), 1995)

A. No driver’s permit shall be granted to any person under the age of eighteen years.

B. A driver’s permit may be denied upon substantial evidence of facts of either physical or moral deficiencies of the applicant or unfitness to drive a vehicle which, in the sound discretion of the City Manager, or his designated representative, would render such applicant not a competent person to operate a taxicab.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995; Ord. 1241, 1983; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Every driver’s permit issued under this chapter shall set forth the name of the owner for which the driver is authorized to operate a taxicab, and shall be valid only so long as he continues in the employ of such owner. Upon termination of such employment, the person holding a permit under this chapter to engage in the taxicab business, shall notify the City Manager of the driver’s name and permit number within seventy-two hours thereafter. The driver shall forthwith surrender his driver’s permit to the City Manager, or his designated representative.

(Ord. 1705, (part), 1995)

The City Manager, or his designated representative, shall have the power to suspend or revoke any driver’s permit issued under this chapter after a hearing thereon, in the event the holder thereof has violated any provision of this chapter or has drunk or consumed intoxicating liquor while on duty, or failed to pass a mandatory testing for controlled substances, which violation, in the sound discretion of said official, shall be deemed sufficient evidence of the fact that said driver is not a competent person to operate a taxicab. Such suspension or revocation by the City Manager, or his designated representative, shall be forthwith reported to the owner last employing said driver. In the event of such revocation or suspension of a driver’s permit, such permit shall be forthwith surrendered to the City Manager, or his designated representative, by the holder thereof.

(Ord. 1722, (part), 1996; Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Any interested party may appeal the administrative decision of the City Manager, or his designated representative, by filing a written notice of appeal with the City Clerk within five days after his decision. Such appeal shall be heard by the City Council which may affirm, amend, or reverse the order, or take other action deemed appropriate. The Clerk shall give written notice of the time and place of the hearing to the appellant and any other person requesting notice. In conducting the hearing, the City Council shall not be limited by the technical rules of evidence.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Any driver employed to carry a passenger to a definite point shall take the most direct route possible that will carry the passenger safely and expeditiously to the destination (unless otherwise directed by the passenger).

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

No owner or driver of any taxicab licensed under authority of this chapter shall fail or refuse, when in service and not otherwise engaged for hire, to transport to his announced destination within the City at rates authorized in this chapter any person who presents himself for carriage in a sober and orderly manner and for a lawful purpose.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

Any charge made, or sought to be made, to any patron of any taxicab in excess of the charges authorized by this chapter for the particular type of service rendered or sought, when shown either by confession of the party, or competent testimony, or failure on the part of any driver or operator of any taxicab to make proper returns to his employer, shall result in immediate suspension of the license of such driver until such time as, after due process, such license is either reinstated or revoked. Either the person, or the employer of a person, responsible for any overcharge shall be required to make restitution to any defrauded patron for the amount of the overcharge.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)

The violation of any provision of this chapter shall be deemed an infraction, and shall be punishable as provided in Chapter 1.12. Each day during which such violation continues shall be a separate and distinct offense, and each such separate offense shall be deemed an infraction punishable as aforesaid.

(Ord. 883, (part), 1978)