It shall be unlawful for any person to operate or permit a taxi owned or controlled by him to be operated as a vehicle for hire upon the streets of Cookeville unless such taxi is equipped with proper brakes, front and rear lights, safe tires, horn, muffler, rear vision mirror and windshield wipers, all of which shall conform to the requirements of the state motor vehicle law. Each taxi shall be equipped with a handle or latch or other opening device attached to each door of the passenger compartment so that such doors may be operated by the passenger from the inside of the taxi without the intervention or assistance of the driver. Each taxi shall be equipped with seat belts for each passenger, a State of Tennessee approved rear-facing child passenger restraint system for any child weighing twenty (20) pounds or less, a State of Tennessee approved forward-facing child passenger restraint system for any child one (1) to three (3) years of age weighing greater than twenty (20) pounds, and a belt positioning booster seat system for any child four (4) to eight (8) years of age measuring less than four feet, nine inches (4'9") in height. The motor and all the mechanical parts shall be kept in such condition or repair as may be reasonably necessary to provide for the safety of the public and the continuous satisfactory operation of the taxi. (Ord. #000-02-03, Feb. 2000 as renumbered and replaced by Ord. #011-03-03, April 2011)