1982-080T01L
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ARTICLE IV, SECTION 21-43 THROUGH SECTION
26-64 AND ARTICLE V, SECTION 24-130 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES
OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS, REGULATING THE OPERATION OF
TAXICABS IN THE CITY OF DENTON, PROVIDING FOR TAXICAB STANDS
AND REGULATIONS THEREOF, PROVIDING FOR A LICENSE, PROVIDING FOR
LIABILITY INSURANCE, PROVIDING FOR A PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED
$200 00 FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF, AND DECLARING AN EFFFCTIVE DATE
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS HEREBY ORDAINS
SECTION I
That Article IV, Sections 26-43 through 26-64, of the Code
of the City of Denton, Texas is hereby amended to hereafter
read as follows
ARTICLE IV
TAXICABS
Section 26-43 Definitions
"City" The term "city" as used in this article shall mean
the C~ty of Denton, Texas
"Driver" The term "driver" shall be held to Include every
person in actual charge of the operation of a taxicab, as
herein defined, whether as owner or agent, servant or employee
of the "owner" as herein defined
"Owner" The term "owner" when used in th~s article shall
be construed to mean any person, firm, corporation,
association, partnership or society who has the control,
direction, maintenance and the benefit of the collection of
revenue derlved from the operation of taxicabs on or over the
streets or public ways of the city, whether as owner or
otherwise, except as "driver" as herein defined
"Person" The term "person" shall include both singular
and plural, and shall mean and include any Individual, firm,
corporatlon, association, partnership or society, and their
agents, servants or employees
"Street" The term "street" as used in this artzcle shall
mean and include any street, alley, avenue, land, boulevard,
PAGE ONE
drive, public place or highway commonly used for the purpose of
public travel within the incorporated limits of the City of
Denton.
"Taxicab" The term "taxicab" as used in this article shall
mean every automobile or motor propelled vehicle used for
transporation of passengers for hire over the public streets of
the City of Denton and irrespective of whether or not the
operations extend beyond the incorporated limits of the City of
Denton, provided, however, the term "taxicab" shall not apply to
motor buses operated within the incorporated limits of the Clty
of Denton under a franchise from the city over a fixed or
defined route, nor shall said term apply to motor buses
regularly operated over a fixed and defined route in the city to
or from points outside of the ~ncorporated limits
"Taximeter" The term "taximeter" as used ~n this article
shall mean a machine adapted automatically to calculate, at a
predetermined rate or rates, and to register, the charge for
hire of a taxicab and such charges shall be lndlcated by means
of figures
"Waiting time" The term "waiting time" as used in thls
article shall mean such times as may be consumed or lost at the
speclal instance and request of a passenger after such passenger
has f~rst entered the taxicab to make a trip and before reaching
his final destination No charge shall be made against a
passenger for any time lost on account of any other delay
whatsoever
Section 26-4A Taxicab Licenses
(a) "Required" It shall be unlawful for any person to
drive or operate, or cause to be driven or operated, any taxicab
upon or over any street in the Cxty of Denton, unless there has
been obtained by the owner of and for such taxicab and ex~stlng
in full force and effect, a license duly issued by the city
secretary of the City of Denton as hereinafter provided
PAGE TWO
(b) "Necessity" No license to operate a taxicab shall be
issued by the city secretary until the chief of police of the
City of Denton has certified that
1 The taxicab has been properly inspected as
required by the laws of the State of Texas,
2 The liability insurance required by this Article
for each taxicab is in full force and effect
3 The taxicab or taxicab service has a definite and
fixed place of business in the City of Denton and
has a telephone number in service at which
requests for taxicab service can be made
(c) "Revocation or S~spenslon of License" Upon complaint
against a licensee filed by any person with the chief of police,
or upon his own motion, charging violation of any of the terms
of this article, or any ordinances of the City of Denton, or
laws of the State of Texas regulating motor vehicles, the chief
of police after giving five (5) days notice of the grounds of
said complaint to such licensee against whom complaint is made,
may hear evidence with reference to such complaint, and after
such hearing the chief of police may revoke or suspend the
license for good cause shown
(d) "Findings" After the chief of police has heard the
complaint for the revocation or suspension of the license of any
owner of a taxicab, he shall make his findings and declare the
same, and either the owner of such taxicab or the complaintant
shall have the right to appeal to the city council as
hereinafter set out
(e) "License Contents" Said license shall state the year
for which it is issued, the name of the owner of said vehicle,
shall designate that said vehicle is a "taxicab", shall state
the make of said vehicle, the engine number of said vehicle, and
the current license number of said vehicle, and shall state the
amount of license tax paid for the operation of said vehicle and
shall further state that the owner of said vehicle has deposited
with the city an insurance policy for the protection of the
PAGE THREE
passengers thereof and of the general public as provided for in
this article, and said license shall be signed by the city
secretary
Section 26-4.5 P~bllc Liability Insurance
(a) "Required" B~fore any license shall be issued to any
owner of a taxicab hereinbefore defined, or before any renewal
of licenses shall be granted, the owner shall be required to
file with the city secretary, and thereafter keep in full force
and effect, a policy of public liability insurance approved by
the city attorney executed by an insurance company duly
authorized to do business in the State of Texas, and performable
in Denton County,~Texas, insuring the public against any loss or
damage that may result to any person or property from the
operation of such vehicle or vehicles, and the maximum amount of
recovery in such policy of insurance specified, shall not be
less than the following sums, to-wit
(1) For total liability in any one accldent for
personal injuries or death, One Hundred Thousand
Dollars ($100,000.00)
(2)i For the injury or death of any one person in any
one accident, Three Hundred Thousand Dollars
($300,000 00)
(3) For injury or destruction of property in any one
accident,. Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000 00)
Provided, however, that if it be shown to the satisfaction
of the chief of police that policies in the above amounts cannot
be obtained, then policies in lesser amounts may be secured and
filed in full compliance with the provisions hereof, upon
certificate to that effect being filed with the city secretary
by the chief of police, and upon approval of the stated lesser
amounts by the city attorney
(b) "Exceptions, Employees" The above described public
liability insurance shall be for the protection of the
passengers of said vehicles and for the public, but shall not
cover personal injuries sustained by the servants, agents or
employees of the person filing the same
PAGE FOUR
CC) "Continuing Liability" Ail policies of public
l~abllity insurance shall contain a provision for a continuing
l~ablllty thereon up to the full amount thereof, notwithstanding
any recovery thereon
(d) "Cancellatlon" In the event any pollcy ~s so cancelled
upon the request of the surety or ~nsurer, and no insurance
policy is filed by said licensee before the cancellation of said
original assurance, then the license to operate taxicabs granted
to sa~d licensee shall be automatically revoked
(e) "City Not Llable".~ Neither said city nor any officer
thereof shall be held liable for the pecuniary responsibility or
solvency of any such insurer, or ~n any manner become llable for
any sum on account of any such clalm or act or ommiss~on
relating to any such motor vehicle, nor shall the llabllity of
the owner of any such motor vehicle be ~n any manner limited or
changed in connection with this Article of such license or
assurance but the 3udgment creditors having causes of action
secured thereby shall be authorized to sue directly on such
policy of insurance without lmpleadlng the City of Denton, and
all persons known to any insurer to have been injured or damaged
~n the same accident and claiming damages thereunder may be made
parties without priority of claim on payment ~n any suit had or
lnstltuted on account of such matters
Section 26 46 License and Inspection fee
(a) "Amount, Term" In order to defray a part of the
expense necessary to provide sur ye ~llance, super v~sion and
~nspectlon of taxicabs required under the terms and provisions
of this Article, there is hereby levied a license and inspection
fee of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) per annum for each taxicab
so operated, which fee shall be collected from every person,
firm or corporation owning and operating taxicabs on the streets
of the city by the clty secretary before said license or renewal
thereof is issued Sald fee shall be payable in advance on an
PAGE FIVE
annual basis, and shall be due and payable for any year not
later than the first day of January of any year, such fee to
cover the calendar year If a license to operate any taxicab is
granted during a current year the fee shall be paid for the
balance of the year ending December thirty-first
(b) "Sold, Wrecked, Destroyed ~Vehicles" In the event a
taxicab on which the fee has been paid for the then current year
is sold, wrecked or destroyed, the owner thereof shall have the
right to replace said taxicab with another, and upon written
application to the chief of police, the license and inspection
fee therefor paid on said taxicab so sold, wrecked, or destroyed
shall be made applicable to the vehicle designated to replace
such taxicab so sold, wrecked or destroyed, and the licensee
shall surrender the license certificate on the vehicle so sold,
wrecked or destroyed before receiving a new license certificate
(c) "Lost License Certificates" In case any licensee shall
lose hls license certificate, said licensee shall worthwlth and
before dolng any further business procure a duplicate license
certificate from the city secretary, and shall pay for such
duplicate license certificcate the sum of Five Dollars ($5 00)
(d) "Refunds" There shall not in any event be any refund
of license and inspection fees paid under this article
(e) "Receipts" The fees shall be paid to the city cashier
who shall issue a receipt therefor which shall be presented to
the City Secretary before any license is issued
Section 2~-47 Ope=atlon of Taxicab Limited to Licensee
and Approved Chauffeurs
No taxicab for which a license shall have been issued shall
be operated by anyone except the licensee thereof, or any
employee properly qualified, and approved by the chief of police
of taxicabs Licensee shall obtain the name, address and last
place of employment of each and every licensed chauffeur
applying for work before hiring him, and further said licensee
shall forthwith furnish to the chief of police the name and
PAGE SIX
address of every licensed chauffeur before his being h~red, and
of every licensed chauffeur that may be dlscharged
Section 26-48 Transfer of License
No l~¢ense ~ssued under the terms of this article shall be
transferred to any other person, nor shall such l~cense be used
for the operation of any vehicle except for the vehicle for
which sa~d license is ~ssued
Section 26-~9 License to be Posed in Cab
The l~cense ~ssued for the operation of a taxicab under the
terms of th~s article shall be posted w~th~n said tax~cab ~n a
conspicuous place, and ~t shall be a v~olat~on of this article
for a failure to do so
Section 26-5D. Owner's Named etc ~ Required on Cab
~ery taxicab shall have painted, or affixed by decal on the
door of the cab the name of the owner or the trade name under
which the owner operates, together w~th the owner's telephone
number, and the cab number, and the number of the cab and the
telephone number of the owner shall be affixed upon the rear of
all such vehicles All the lettering mentioned in th~s
paragraph shall be not less than two inches (2") ~n height, and
not less than one-fourth ~nch (1/~") ~n stroke
Section 26-5~ Rights of Passengers
Any dr~ver employed to carry passengers to a definite point
shall take the most direct route posslble that w~ll carry the
passengers safely and expeditlously to their destlnatlon
Section 2~-52. Ta~meters, Rates to be Charged
All fares shall be determined by a taximeter installed ~n
each taxicab and a dr~ver shall charge only a fee as computed by
such taximeter Every taximeter so ~nstalled shall be kept in
good operating condition and the taximeter or ~ts dr~ve system
shall be sealed at all points which the components, ~f
manipulated, could affect the function or accuracy of the
tax~meter. A dr~ver shall not charge a fare for operating a
PAGE SEVEN
t.~xlcab in the city that ls inconsistent with the following
established rates
(a) P~ssengers will be charged as determined by the
taximeter a minimum fare of one dollar and twenty
cents ($1 20) including the first one-tenth (1/10)
mile plus ten cents ~$0 10) for each additional
one-tenth (1/10) mile from the point of pickup to
destination
(b) An extra charge of fifty cents ($~ 50) will be
charged for each additional passenger
(c) A surcharge of fifty cents ($~ 50) will be charged
for any pickup occurring between the hours of 8 00
p m and 6 0D a m
(d) Passengers will be charged as determined by the
taximeter a fare of twenty cents ¢$0 20) for each
one and one-half (l-l/Z) minutes of waiting time
or traffic delay
Section 26-53 Rates an Chauffeur's Name and License to be~Posted iN Cab
There shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the inside
of each licensed taxicab, in addition to the license issued to
licensee required by this article, a card showing the rates
charged by said taxicab There shall also be placed in a
conspicuous place inside of each licensed taxicab a card bearing
the name and chauffeur's license number of the driver of said
taxicab as issued to him by the city secretary
Section 26-5A Passengers Required to P&y Fare
It shall be unlawful for any person to refuse to pay the
legal fare of any of the vehicles mentioned in this Article
after having hired the same
Section 26-55 Passenger's Receipt, May B~ Required
It shall be unlawful for the driver of any taxicab upon
receiving full payment of a fare to refuse to give a receipt
upon the request of any passenger making said payment
Section 26-56. Ch&r~ing Excessive Fares Unlawful
It shall be unlawful for the owner or driver of any taxicab
to refuse to convey a passenger at the rate specified on the
rate card displayed in said taxicab, or demand or receive an
amount in excess of the rates displayed on said card. Except,
PAGE EIGHT
that such owner or driver may refuse to convey a passenger them
being guilty of misconduct or breach of the peace
Section 2~-57 through Section 26~-64 Reserved
S~¢TION II~
That Article V,~ Section 24-130 of Chapter 24 of the Code of
Ordinances of the City of Denton, Texas is hereby amended to
read as follows
Section 24-130 Designation and Use of Tax~cab Stands
Ca) Taxicab stands or zones may be granted to any taxicab
bus~ness where such stand or zone is necessary for the conduct
of the business of said taxicab bus,ness subject to the
provisions provided below
(b) The owner of one or more licensed tax~cabs desiring a
tax~cab zone or stand for a taxicab use shall make written
application to the Traffic Support Commission on forms provided
by such comm~lssion
(c) If the commission finds that there is a need for such
taxicab stand or zone it may approve such application and d~rect
that such stand or zone be designated by sign or other
appropriate markings upon receipt by the applicant of a fee of
Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($~50 00) Thereafter, the applicant
receiving such tax~cab zone or stand shall pay an annual fee
prior to October f~rst of each year of One Hundred Fifty Dollars
(*$150 00) ~n order to renew the use of such zone or stand for
taxicab purposes for one year
(d) The denial of an application for a taxicab zone or stand
may be appealed to the City Council
(e) The dr~ver of a taxicab shall not park upon any street
in any business d~strict at any time other than at a taxicab
stand except sa~d vehicle may temporarily stop or park in
accordance with other stopplng or parking regulations at any
place for the purpose of and while actually engaged in loading
or unloading passengers
(f) No person shall stop, stand or park a vehicle other than
PAGE NINE
a taxicab ~n a taxicab stand or zone when such zone or stand has
been officially deslgnated and appropriately marked, except that
a drive of a passenger vehicle may temporarily stop there~n for
the purpose of and while actually engaged in loading or
unloading passengers when such stopping does not interfere with
any taxicab waiting to enter or about to enter such stand or
zone
SECTION III~
Any person who shall violate a provision of this ordinance,
or fails to comply therewith or with any of the requirements
thereof, or of a permit or certificate issued thereunder, shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding
Two Hundred Dollars ($).00.00) Each such person shall be deemed
guilty of a separate offense for each and every day or portion
thereof during which any violation of this ordinance is
committed, or continued, and upon conviction of any such
violations such person shall be punished within the limits above
SECTION IV
That this ordinance shall become effective fourteen (14)
days from the date of its passage, and the City. Secretary
hereby directed to cause the caption of th~s ordinance to be
published twice ~n the Denton Record-Chronicle, the official
newspaper of the City of Denton, Texas, within ten (10) days of
the date of its passage
O
CI~OF D~TON, TEXAS
ATTEST ~
C~TE ~LEN,-CIT~ S~C~TARY
CITY OF DE~ON, ~XAS
APPROVED A~ TO ~L FORM
C - J TA~OR,~ JR., CITY ATTO~EY
CITY OF DE~ON~ TE~S
IN THE MATTER OF
C~TY OF DENTON
(CHARLOTTE ALLEN)
THE STATE OF TEXAS Roy Appleton, Jr
County of Denton
being duly s~vorn, says he ~s the General Manager of the Denton Record- Chronicle, a
newspaper of general clrculabon which has been continuously and regularly pubhshed
for a period of not less than one year ~n the County of Denton, Texas, preceding the date
of the attached nobce, and that the said nobce was pubhshed m sa~d paper on the follow-
~ng dates
82-8o Re~ulatJ. n~ the eperation of taxicabs in Denton
22 I xnas $:1.7,60
21 October 82
Subscribed and sworn to before me this day of _
Witness my hand and official se o ~
Notary Pubbc, Denton County, Texas