No person may drive a vehicle for hire while drinking from an open container which contains any alcoholic beverage while driving upon any roadway or in any place to which members of the public have access as invitees or licensees. No passenger shall be allowed to drink alcoholic beverages while being transported, taking into consideration the safety and lives of the general public, the safety of the driver or damage to the vehicle for hire.
The driver shall seek the assistance of any police officer, who shall assist the driver in any lawful way and if, in possession of the necessary evidence of any criminal behavior, shall prosecute the offending passengers.
No driver shall operate a vehicle for hire recklessly, or in an unsafe manner, or in disregard to statute law, bylaws and rules and regulations of the Town of Falmouth governing the operation of motor vehicles or in disregard for public safety.
A vehicle for hire shall be a nonsmoking motor vehicle.
No person having charge of a vehicle for hire, (classified as a taxicab), shall take up or carry any passenger after the vehicle for hire has been occupied or engaged by a prior passenger without such consent of such prior passenger. In the event subsequent passengers are taken up, the first passenger shall pay the metered fare from the point he/she was picked up to his/her drop point, where the meter shall be reset and the subsequent passenger shall be responsible for the metered fare from that point. The first passenger shall not be obliged, or requested to pay an extra fare or fee for refusing to share a vehicle for hire.
No driver shall speak in an obscene, boisterous, loud or abusive manner while he/she is engaged in providing service to passengers. Nor shall the driver threaten, harass or abuse any passenger or use or attempt to use physical force against a passenger except in self-defense.
The driver shall take passenger(s) to his/her destination by the shortest reasonable route unless the passenger requests a different route or unless the driver proposed a faster alternative route which the passenger agrees to. The driver shall comply with all reasonable and lawful routing requests of the passenger unless it is impossible or unsafe for the driver to comply.
A driver shall give the correct change to a passenger who has paid the fare. A driver shall be capable of making change for a twenty-dollar bill.
Upon completion of a trip, the driver shall, on request, give a receipt to a passenger for the amount charged, either by an automatic printed receipt or by a specially prepared receipt approved by the Examiner. The receipt shall contain:
A. 
The name of the company.
B. 
Date, time and mileage.
C. 
Amount of fares and extras.
D. 
Operator's name and operator's vehicle for hire license number.
E. 
Signature of the operator and any other requirements of the Examiner.
Should a passenger refuse to pay the fare, the driver shall proceed directly to the nearest police station, present the facts and follow the officer's instructions for resolving the dispute. A complaint can be sought by the driver under MGL c. 159A, § 16, for fare evasion.
The driver and/or the owner may be personally liable for any loss of property suffered by passengers if after a determination by the Examiner that the loss of property was caused by the intentional misconduct or negligence of the driver or owner of the vehicle for hire.
A. 
A driver having charge of a vehicle for hire in a public place shall be hygienically clean and suitably dressed.
B. 
Drivers shall have a neat and well-groomed appearance.
C. 
A driver shall not use or permit another to use his/her vehicle for any indecent or unlawful purpose.
D. 
A driver shall, upon request, give his/her name and vehicle for hire operator's license number to a passenger or a prospective passenger.
E. 
A driver shall, upon demand of a police officer, produce the following documents:
(1) 
Massachusetts driver's license.
(2) 
Vehicle for hire operator's license.
(3) 
Vehicle for hire registration.
(4) 
Vehicle for hire license.
(5) 
Vehicle for hire inspection card.
(6) 
Trip log.
F. 
A driver shall cooperate with law enforcement officers in the performance of their duty. He or she shall not conceal evidence of a crime nor voluntarily aid violators to escape arrest. He/she shall report immediately to the police any attempt to use his vehicle to commit a crime or escape from the scene of the crime.
G. 
A driver shall not permit anyone who is not a passenger to sit anywhere in the vehicle. A driver shall not sit in any part of the vehicle except the front seat, unless obtaining consent from the passengers to enter the passenger compartment of the vehicle. A driver shall be courteous to fellow drivers.
H. 
A driver shall not operate a vehicle for hire unless the following items are present:
(1) 
Massachusetts driver's license.
(2) 
Vehicle for hire operator's license.
(3) 
Vehicle for hire registration.
(4) 
Vehicle for hire license.
(5) 
Vehicle for hire inspection card.
(6) 
Trip log.
I. 
Trip log. A trip log may exist in any form so long as it is bound and readily legible. It shall be neat in appearance and kept in day and chronological format. It shall contain pick-up points, destinations and number of passengers transported. It shall also contain any period of time in which the vehicle was left unattended and the reason, equipment failures and vehicle maintenance scheduled during a driver's shift, accidents involving the vehicle, any police intervention and result of said intervention and the beginning and ending time of the driver's shift.
J. 
A driver shall appear as in his/her photograph displayed on the vehicle for hire operator license. Where the photograph shows eyeglasses, hearing aids, mustache, beard, etc., they shall be worn. New photographs shall be submitted forthwith if the driver's appearance is changed.
K. 
No other vehicle for hire operator's license shall be displayed other than the driver currently operating the vehicle.
L. 
A driver shall not permit any other person to operate the vehicle in which he/she is dispatched unless such relief is ordered by the owner or dispatcher.
M. 
No driver shall operate a vehicle for hire more than twelve (12) hours in any continuous twenty-four-hour period.
N. 
No driver shall operate a vehicle for hire while his/her Massachusetts driver's license is expired suspended or revoked.
All complaints shall be reduced to writing, signed under the penalties of perjury and forwarded to the office of the Examiner. All complaints received by the Examiner shall be investigated, except complaints against policy set forth in these rules and regulations and those allegations too trivial to dignify as true complaints. The Examiner will initiate a preliminary investigation to determine if a violation of the these rules and regulations have occurred; if so, the offense, the responsible party (parties), the extent of damages (compensatory, personal injury, property damage) and the appropriate enforcement action. Enforcement action shall not be limited to § 280-24 of these rules and regulations. Any violation of these rules and regulations actionable under state and federal law may result in criminal and or civil prosecution in the appropriate court of jurisdiction. The Examiner shall maintain a vehicle for hire complaint file and shall annually forward said complaints to the Board of Selectmen.