Bermuda Consolidated Legislation

 

BERMUDA STATUTORY INSTRUMENT

BR 54/1987

MOTOR TAXI (RADIO DESPATCHING SERVICE) REGULA TIONS 1987

[made under section 37A of the Motor Car Act 1951 [title 21 item 4 ] and brought into operation on 1 November 1987]

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

1 Citation

2 Interpretation

3 Application for permit

4 Conditions for grant of permit

5 Conditions for operating a radio despatching service

6 Despatching service may specify certain hours to be worked

7 Despatching service to submit agreement to Board

8 Charges for radios to be approved by Board

9 Duties of drivers

10 Hours during which taxis must be available

11 Disciplinary action against driver and owner

Citation

1 These Regulations may be cited as the Motor Taxi (Radio Despatching Service) Regulations 1987 and shall come into operation on the 1st day of November 1987.

Interpretation

2 In these Regulations—

"the Act" means the Motor Car Act 1951 [title 21 item 4];

"radio despatching service" means a radio despatching service as defined in subsection (1) of section 37A of the act;

"two-way radio set" means a radio set capable of transmitting and receiving messages over the air waves.

Application for permit

3 Every application for a permit to operate a radio despatching service shall be made in the form approved by the Public Service Vehicles Licensing Board.

Conditions for grant of permit

4 The Board may grant a permit where it is satisfied that—

(a) the applicant has a minimum of 50 motor taxis regis tered with it;

(b) the applicant is equipped with a two-way radio set; and

(c) every motor taxi registered with the applicant is equipped with a two-way radio set.

Conditions for operating a radio despatching service

5 Every person operating a radio despatching service shall—

(a) keep the service open for business every day, twenty-four hours a day;

(b) keep time-sheets in which are recorded the times of re porting for duty and signing off of every motor taxi reg istered with it;

(c) keep a record of the licence number of every motor taxi despatched for a fare, and the time of such despatch and time when the driver reports the completion of the job to which he has been despatched;

(d) retain time sheets and other record for a period of not less than 90 days after the date of the last entry thereon;

(e) on demand, furnish to the Minister information con tained in such time sheets or other records or both, as the Minister may require;

(f) immediately report to the Board—

(i) the name and motor taxi licence number of any driver who has refused to obey any order to take a fare;

(ii) the owner of any motor taxi which is withdrawn from the service;

(iii) any driver of a motor taxi who is alleged to have acted in a discourteous manner to or in the hearing of a passenger or prospective passenger.

Despatching service may specify certain hours to be worked

6 Every person operating a radio despatching service shall, upon giving not less than 24 hours' notice, have the right to detail any motor taxi registered with that service to work certain hours to be specified by him.

Despatching service to submit agreement to Board

7 Every operator of a radio despatching service shall submit for approval of the Board any agreement governing the motor taxis regis tered with the service, and shall do so at the time when an application for a permit is made.

Charges for radios to be approved by Board

8 Charges made by the operator of a radio despatching service against the owners of motor taxis for the use of two-way radios shall first be submitted to the Board for approval.

Duties of drivers

9 It shall be the duty of the driver of every motor taxi registered with a radio despatching service—

(a) to answer every call made to him by that service when be is on duty;

(b) to go to any place to which he has been reasonably despatched.

Hours during which taxis must be available

10 (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), every motor taxi regis tered with a radio despatching service shall be made available for the conveyance of passengers for hire or reward not less than 16 hours a day unless there is a reason acceptable to the Minister for not making the motor taxi so available.

(2) The Minister may by notification in the Gazette vary the re quirement of paragraph (1) to take account of seasonal variations in the demand for the services of motor taxis or in such other circumstances as the Minister thinks fit.

(3) The Minister may, on application in writing by the owner of a motor taxi, grant to the owner permission to make his motor taxi avail able for periods other than those specified in paragraph (1) where the Minister is satisfied that in the circumstances of the case the new hours so permitted would not result in the under utilisation of the motor taxi concerned.

Disciplinary action against driver and owner

11 (1) If the driver of a motor taxi fails to comply with regulation 9, the Board may take action against him under section 90(1) of the Act.

(2) If the owner of a motor taxi fails to comply with regulation 10, the Board may take disciplinary action against him and on being satisfied of the facts of the case, may cause his name and motor taxi to be removed from the register of the radio despatching service to which he and it had been registered.