§ 1108. CONDITIONS APPLICABLE TO DRIVER PERMITS.

(a) Driver Identification. Upon issuance of a Driver Permit, the SFMTA will issue to each Driver a Driver Permit Card (A-Card). Every Driver shall conspicuously display his or her A-Card on the outside of his or her clothing at all times while operating a Motor Vehicle for Hire, and shall provide the A-Card for inspection upon request by the SFMTA or any peace officer. The A-Card shall be worn only by the Driver to whom it is issued.

(b) Taxi Driver Alcohol and Drug Testing Policy.

(1) Drivers must comply with all relevant provisions of the Taxi Driver Drug and Alcohol Policy, including but not limited to submitting to reasonable suspicion and post-accident drug and alcohol testing at the direction of the Color Scheme and as provided by the Taxi Driver Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy.

(2) No Driver may operate a Motor Vehicle for Hire while his or her driving ability is impaired by alcohol, any Prohibited Drug, or prescription drugs. No Driver may consume alcohol or any Prohibited Drug while operating a Motor Vehicle for Hire.

(3) Drivers shall not sell or possess alcohol or Prohibited Drugs while operating a Motor Vehicle for Hire or at the Color Scheme's place of business.

(c) Notification to SFMTA of Change of Affiliation with Color Scheme.

In accordance with California Government Code Section 53075.5(b)(1)(B), a Driver’s Permit shall be suspended for any period during which the Driver is not affiliated with a Color Scheme.

(d) Driver Duties at Beginning of Shift.

(1) A Driver is required to perform a safety check on a Motor Vehicle for Hire prior to placing it in operation. The Driver is responsible for ensuring that all equipment on the vehicle that is required by this Article is working properly, including but not limited to a Ramp Taxi ramp and securement system.

(2) A Driver is required to perform a communications test at the commencement of each shift to determine that there is functional communications equipment capable of both receiving and transmitting voice information. If communications equipment is not functional, that vehicle shall be taken out of service until such time as the communications equipment is functional.

(3) A Driver is responsible for ensuring that their vehicle is supplied with the following items:

(A) 311 card;

(B) A supply of receipts, preprinted with the name of the affiliated Color Scheme; and

(C) Current maps of San Francisco and San Mateo counties or a functional GPS device;

(D) Working flashlight, if driving at night;

(E) SF Paratransit manual trip ticket forms; and

(F) Back-up credit card payment processing device and any supplies required for its operation.

(4) A Driver shall ensure that the vehicle is clean inside and out and free of offensive odors, wash the exterior of the vehicle and/or sweep the interior passenger compartment and trunk as needed, and remove any loose items from the vehicle’s dashboard and/or rear shelf.

(e) Driver Duties During Shift.

(1) A Driver shall not refuse, or direct or permit the refusal, of prospective passengers in any place within the City for transportation to any other place in the City, or to or from the San Francisco International Airport, or to the Oakland International Airport, or paratransit passengers within the Paratransit Program service area, at rates authorized by law, if the prospective passengers present themselves for transportation in a clean, coherent, safe and orderly manner and for a lawful purpose and the Driver has sufficient time before the end of his or her shift.

(2) A Driver shall not refuse to transport a passenger's luggage, wheelchair or other mobility device, crutches or other property that can be transported within the confines of the vehicle's trunk and/or passenger areas. A Driver may refuse to convey a passenger who requests taxi service for the primary purpose of transporting goods or cargo if in the Driver's judgment the amount of goods to be carried could result in unsafe driving or damage to the vehicle.

(3) No Driver may refuse to transport a person with a physical disability in the front seat to accommodate the person's physical disability.

(4) A Driver shall not refuse to transport any service animal, or a secured, well-behaved and/or contained animal except when the Driver has documentation from a licensed physician of a medical condition that prevents contact with that type of animal on file with the SFMTA.

(5) A Driver shall, if requested, take reasonable measures to assist a passenger as necessary to get into and out of the vehicle, or to load or unload luggage, only to the extent that such assistance is within the physical capacity of the Driver. The Driver shall record the request for assistance and results. If the Driver feels that his or her personal health or safety is at risk or is otherwise unable to assist the passenger, the Driver shall request appropriate assistance capable of handling the request from the Dispatch Service. If the passenger(s) has such a large amount of baggage, luggage, packages and/or equipment to be loaded or unloaded that the Driver's departure is delayed, or when it is necessary to wait for dispatched assistance to arrive, the Driver shall inform the passenger(s) of his or her intention to activate the Taximeter.

(6) Every Driver shall, if requested, assist a person with physical disabilities or an elderly person to get into and out of the vehicle and ensure the passenger is properly secured in the vehicle prior to transport. If a Driver is unable to properly assist and/or secure the passenger, the Driver shall notify the Dispatch Service and request another Driver's assistance or other appropriate service capable of handling the request. The Driver shall record the request and results. The Driver shall remain with the passenger until assistance from another Driver or appropriate service has arrived.

(7) Every Driver must accept dispatch assignments when available from their Dispatch Service. Drivers must immediately notify their Dispatch Service if they are unable to service an accepted call.

(8) A passenger who first engages a Motor Vehicle for Hire has the exclusive right to conveyance therein to his or her destination. The Driver shall not solicit or accept any additional passenger without the prior consent of any passenger who has previously engaged the vehicle, or as authorized by SFMTA.

(9) Except as prohibited by the rules of the Paratransit Program, a Driver may transport two or more passengers who voluntarily agree to split the fare between them. The passengers may by mutual agreement split the fare according to any formula; provided, however, that regardless of any mutual agreement of the passengers, the Driver shall not collect payments that, when combined, exceed the fare shown on the Taximeter at the time that the last passenger reaches their destination.

(10) Drivers shall comply with any passenger request to turn down, turn off or change the channel of any audible device that is not required for safe operation of the vehicle or communication with a Color Scheme, Dispatch Service, law enforcement agency, health care provider, or other emergency service agency. A Driver is not required to comply with a passenger request for any particular audio selection or other passenger listening preferences.

(11) Except for emergencies, including but not limited to an emergency call to a Dispatch Service, a law enforcement agency, health care provider, or other emergency service agency, Drivers shall immediately comply with any passenger request to terminate mobile telephone conversations.

(12) Drivers may only use personal telephones in the vehicle in accordance with all applicable laws. While a passenger is in the vehicle, Drivers' personal conversations must be limited in number and short in duration, and at no time shall a Driver allow a personal communication to interfere with the Driver's full attention to the operation of the vehicle.

(13) During a shift a Driver may not monitor or listen to any Dispatch Service other than the Dispatch Service that provides service to the Color Scheme with which the vehicle is affiliated. A Driver must be logged into all In-Taxi Equipment at all times while operating a taxi vehicle, using a means of identification approved by the SFMTA, and a Driver must be logged into the e-hail application with which the Dispatch Service is affiliated.

(14) A Driver shall not operate a Motor Vehicle for Hire in a reckless or dangerous manner.

(15) Ramp Taxi Service.

(A) Every Ramp Taxi Driver shall meet an average response time to any request for service by a customer using a wheelchair of 20 minutes from the time that the Driver accepts the call.

(B) A Ramp Taxi Driver shall grant priority to requests for service from passengers who use wheelchairs, and once dispatched to a call from a customer using a wheelchair may not accept any other fare while on route to that dispatched call, except as otherwise instructed by the dispatcher. In the absence of a request for service to a passenger who uses a wheelchair, a Ramp Taxi Driver may transport any person.

(16) Drivers shall only receive a tip when expressly and voluntarily offered by the person paying the fare. Drivers may not demand, request, imply, assume or otherwise suggest that the Driver should receive any amount in excess of the authorized fare. A Driver may, without demanding or assuming that the passenger will pay a tip, ask the passenger whether they would like to tip the Driver when the tip is only capable of being added to a payment only by action of the Driver.

(17) The Driver must keep any audio communication device required by this Article at an audible volume, or any visual communication device visible to the Driver at all times during the shift.

(18) Drivers shall, at the beginning of a trip, inform any passenger whose announced destination falls within the parameters of Section 1124(b)(3) that the fare to be charged will be 150% of the amount registered on the Taximeter.

(19) Drivers shall carry sufficient cash to be able to provide change for 20 dollars.

(20) Drivers shall, at the beginning of a trip, inform passenger(s) whose destination requires the crossing of a toll bridge, the amount of the toll charged and that the toll charge is to be paid by the passenger(s) regardless of the direction in which the toll is collected.

(21) Drivers may charge a passenger less than the fare shown on the Taximeter at the end of a trip.

(22) Drivers shall give a fare receipt upon request of the person paying the fare. Drivers shall complete fare receipts legibly with the Driver's A-Card identification number, the Vehicle Number, the Medallion number, and the amount of the fare.

(23) Drivers shall make a visual check of the interior of the vehicle at the conclusion of each trip to determine if any property has been left behind. If any of the passenger's property was loaded in the trunk, the Driver shall check the trunk area at the end of the trip to ensure that no property was left behind.

(24) Upon discovery, a Driver shall report Found Property to the Dispatch Service immediately, and shall take reasonable measures to attempt to return Found Property in the vehicle to the rightful owner during the shift in which it was discovered. If it is not possible to return the Found Property before the end of the shift, the Driver shall leave it with the Color Scheme or Dispatch Service at the end of the shift. Drivers shall record a description of the Found Property on a form provided by the Color Scheme or Dispatch Service, stating whom they have contacted about the Found Property, and whether it was returned to the owner during the shift in which it was discovered, and if not, where and with whom it was left.

(25) If during the course of the work shift, any equipment failure makes the continued operation of the Taxi or Ramp Taxi unsafe, including but not limited to a Ramp Taxi without the required number of functional tie-down securements and lap/shoulder seat belts, then the Driver shall immediately return to vehicle to the Color Scheme to be taken out of service.

(26) The Driver shall not place or allow to be placed any loose items on the dashboard or rear shelf of the vehicle.

(27) The Driver shall keep the vehicle trunk and/or baggage area clean, free of items or materials that could damage or stain passengers' baggage, and free of any container containing flammable liquids.

(28) No Driver shall leave a vehicle unattended on a public street for more than 4 hours.

(29) No Driver shall threaten, harass, or abuse another person, nor may a Driver speak in an obscene, threatening or abusive manner.

(30) Drivers shall not use or attempt to use any physical force against any person except proportional, reasonable force necessary for self-defense or defense of another.

(31) Drivers shall be clean in dress and person.

(32) Any Driver who is pulled over by a Peace Officer while the Taximeter is in operation must turn off the Taximeter from the time the vehicle is pulled over until the time that the Peace Officer authorizes the vehicle to depart.

(33) No Driver or passenger shall burn any substance or use an e-cigarette or any type of vaping device in the vehicle at any time. No Driver shall drink or eat while a passenger is in the vehicle.

(34) Resolution of Fare Disputes. In any case of fare dispute between the Driver and passenger(s), the Driver shall call the Police or, with the consent of the passenger, convey the passenger(s) to the nearest police station, where the officer in charge shall immediately decide the case, and if the decision is in favor of the passenger, the Driver shall convey the passenger from the Police Station to his or her original destination without additional charge.

(35) A Driver shall not demand any other form of payment from a Paratransit Debit Card holder who offers the Driver a valid Paratransit Debit Card that contains an adequate balance to pay for the requested trip that is authorized by the Paratransit Program.

(36) A Driver shall not refuse a Paratransit Debit Card on the ground that the In-Taxi Equipment is not functional, but shall offer the customer the option of paying using manual back-up paratransit forms.

(37) A Driver shall not add a tip to a fare charged to a Paratransit Debit Card without authorization from the passenger.

(38) A Driver shall not disconnect or otherwise tamper with any equipment that is required by this Article.

(39) A Driver must activate the Taximeter when carrying a passenger.

(f) Duties at End of Shift.

(1) The Driver shall remove any litter, personal items, and any other loose items that do not belong with the vehicle.

(2) Drivers shall turn any unreturned or unclaimed Found Property in the Driver’s possession at the end of a shift to the Color Scheme’s or Dispatch Services’ place of business, and shall obtain a receipt for the item regardless of value.

(SFMTA Bd. Res. No. 09-23, 2/23/2009; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. 09-077, 5/19/2009; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. 09-104, 6/16/2009; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. 09-183, 10/20/2009; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. 10-029, 2/26/2010; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 12/6/2011, Eff. 1/6/2012; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 6/5/2012, Eff. 7/6/2012; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 6/5/2012, Eff. 7/6/2012; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 8/21/2012, Eff. 9/21/2012; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 11/20/2012, Eff. 12/21/2012; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 3/19/2013, Eff. 4/19/2013; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 5/20/2014, Eff. 6/20/2014; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 3/3/2015, Eff. 4/2/2015; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 1020/2015, Eff. 11/20/2015; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 11/17/2015, Eff. 12/18/2015; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 1/3/2017, Eff. 2/3/2017; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 4/4/2017, Eff. 5/5/2017; SFMTA Bd. Res. No. , Ad. 10/16/2018, Eff. 11/16/2018)