(a) A motor vehicle escort guide shall not engage in a funeral escort service other than that of escorting a funeral procession, consisting of the hearse and cortege from the funeral home, the home of the deceased, or the home of the deceased’s family to the place of service and from the place of service to the place of interment. If a funeral procession enters a roadway, expressway, or freeway which has a minimum posted speed limit, the motor vehicle escort guide shall cease the escort before the procession enters the roadway, expressway or freeway and resume the escort after the procession exits the roadway, expressway, or freeway.
(b) A motor vehicle escort guide may escort overheight, overlength, or overwidth vehicles or loads as defined in the State Traffic Code, but only after the chief of police has been notified of each individual escort. The chief of police shall have the authority to designate the route and time of the escort.
(c) A licensed motor vehicle escort guide is authorized to lead funeral processions within the city when the procession has been properly identified by the display of a pennant upon the outside of the lead vehicle and the hearse, and all other vehicles have their headlights turned on.
(d) All motor vehicles in an escorted funeral procession which have been properly designated shall have the right of way over all other vehicles, except fire apparatus, ambulances, and police vehicles at any roadway intersection within the city, and the procession may be escorted through stop signs or signalized intersections without stopping, but the drivers of the motor vehicles shall exercise due regard for the safety of all approaching vehicles, and funeral processions being escorted shall be subject at all times to the control of police officers of the city. This subsection shall not apply to overheight, overlength, or overwidth vehicles or loads as defined in the State Traffic Code, which shall obey all traffic laws and traffic control devices.
(e) Funeral processions shall travel as closely to the right edge of the roadway as practical and at a safe and prudent speed.
(f) A funeral procession shall not enter or travel upon any roadway, expressway, or freeway which has a minimum posted speed limit between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. or between the hours of 4:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. This subsection does not apply on a legal holiday. The funeral procession shall obey all traffic laws while on a roadway, expressway, or freeway which has a minimum posted speed limit.
(g) Funeral processions shall not proceed through the downtown business district bordered by San Jacinto Street on the north, Wood Street on the south, Hawkins Street on the east and Market Street on the west.
(h) Funeral escort guides shall not stop traffic approaching from the opposite direction or force or direct traffic to move off the roadway; however, oncoming traffic may be stopped at intersections and other places to assist the cortege in making left turns. (Ord. Nos. 14584; 15648)