Unless the context in which used requires otherwise, the following words and variants thereof, when used with initial capitalization shall have the following meanings:
“Business license” means the license required by the finance department to operate any business within the city of Murrieta and is in addition to any specific permits required under this chapter for the operation of a taxicab business.
“Business license officer” means the finance director of the city of Murrieta, or the designee of such person.
“Driver” means a person who drives or controls the movements of a taxicab.
“For hire” means any compensation, whether monetary or with any other tangible or intangible item of value, for the purposes of employing a taxicab driver for transportation purposes.
“Passenger” means and includes a person riding in a taxicab as distinguished from one operating the same.
“Pedicab” means a passenger vehicle designed for the carrying of passengers, powered by the use of a single person pedaling passengers for hire on a cycle within the city.
“Person” means and includes a natural person, a partnership, an association, a corporation, or any officer, director or stockholder of a corporation.
“Street” means and includes any street, alley, avenue, lane, court or public place in the city.
“Taxi business permit” means the specific taxicab business permit required under this chapter for any person, proprietor, partnership or corporation to operate a taxicab business transporting passenger(s)-for-hire within the city of Murrieta. This permit is in addition to a business license.
“Taxi driver permit” means the permit required under this chapter that each taxicab driver or operator must possess to operate a taxicab within the city of Murrieta.
“Taxicab” means a motor-propelled passenger vehicle designed for carrying not more than eight persons, excluding the driver, and intended to carry passengers for hire within the city. “Taxicab” shall not include a charter-party carrier of passengers within the meaning of the Passenger Charter-Party Carriers' Act, Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 5351) of Division 2 of the California Public Utilities Code (PUC). “Taxicab” shall not include limousine services licensed by the PUC. Taxicabs shall not include passenger stage carriers licensed by the PUC.
“Taxicab business” means a passenger-for-hire business, either based in Murrieta or elsewhere, whose business activity includes picking up any passengers in the city of Murrieta by on-demand requests, a radio dispatched service, or referral which results in charging the passenger by metered time and/or distance to a destination identified by the hiring passenger for an exclusive ride. Such taxi services are a business that is required to be licensed under this chapter. Taxi services which have picked up passengers outside of the city of Murrieta and delivered the passengers to a location within the city are excluded from the licensing requirements under this chapter.
“Taxicab permit” means the taxicab permit sticker which must be displayed on the taxicab vehicle being used to transport passenger(s)-for-hire within the city of Murrieta.
“Taximeter” means a mechanical or electronic device, by which the charge for hire of a taxicab is automatically calculated, either for distance traveled or for waiting time, or both, and upon which such charge is plainly registered by means of figures indicating dollars and cents.
(Ord. 344 § 3, 2005)