Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1944 )

1 ,.
OFFICE OF THE A-ITORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
~\:
7 AUSTIN
QROYIR SL‘LLRS
-
Al-?wl”CI acwr”C‘
Honorable D. C. Weer
State Hlghvay Engineer
Texas B way Department
Austin 2? Texas
,
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Dear Sir: opinion a;, .Q-6di6 !:
Rer Is a not?+~ kequlred
.....$ohave regular baa lloeme
.‘, plqten where thtqp@Berate
frm an lnoorporated tovn
.’ tca&arr4ycamporwarplant
‘?:,apid@en gobg to or from
._ ,~”
...
.._&he.@ two points It 18 neo-
ea#ary to pass through the
.-..
.,‘~ ..\ ‘.., a$ty limit8 of another in-
‘.. .._,oellporatedtovn and related
,.. .’ yues~lcms?
..\,i
Thmiai1Llr..@okno&ds8:reoelpt of your letter, dated
ky 24, 1944, vhlch rqadr, $n *rt, as follcusr
‘:, .~
“&I reoe& moth< v&‘~harehad several quaa-
..&onsartae rega%@ng ~.the1loensLng or registra-
i~it$& oimotQr buss’es-izansportingpermms for
c.,c’qnrpensatlom hire. Moat of there questions
-.-DP
of 80 many var plants and
‘,oan+ about’-..byt.~son
~iyyyunp~~.,belhgsituated ln Texar.
\ ,, ,I”
;r;, .A’
me questions we would like to have you
clarify for ut3are as follow:
"1. Ia a motor bus required to have regu-
lar bus lloense plates vhere they op-
erate from an lucorporated town to an
amy camp or war plant and when going
to or from these two poInta it la nec-
eaeary to pass through the city limits
Honorable D. C. Greer, Page 2
of another Inoorporated tovn? For
example, a bus operator hss a permit
from the Railroad Commia~ion to trar?e-
port persons for compensation or hire
from Tovn A to Plant C; and from these
two points It la necessary that he
p888 through the city limits of Incor-
porated Town B but he 18 not perrmltted
to tranrport passengers from Town A to
Town B or from Tovn B to Plant C nor
the reverseb The only reason he passes
through the city limits of Tovn B la
because the hlghvay on which he travels
is looated through the olty limit8 of
that tovn.
"2. A Bus Ccanpanyhas a peimlt from the
Railroad Comml~~Ion to service a group
of war plant8 and air fleldr, all ait-
uated together from three Inoorporated
town8. In rendering thin 8ervIoe, the
bue operator8 are not permltted to han-
dle passengers frcm one of these towns
to anothar bqt only from theae towns
and IntermedIate point8 de8tIned to
one of the var plants or air fields an&
from the plants and air field8 to either
of’ the tovns and Intermediate points,
However, In rendering this servloe, the
bus operate8 to and through each of the
three Incorporated towns. Should these
bu88es be licensed uith regular bus
plater because they operate in and out
of these Inoorporated towns to the war
plants, or should they have regular
paeaenger plates slnee they,do not do
s.ny Inter-city business?
“3I. On the Texas and Mexico Border a Bus
Company, whose resldenoe la in Mexico,
.operates to a town ln Texas and In this
operation they,do not travel outside of
the city Unite of the Texas Town. Their
Honorable D. C. Greer, Page 3
bUBineBB in Texas iB Btl’iOtl~ inter-
national BinCO they do no intra-oity
or intra-state service In Texas. The
Tovn ln Mexico Is Immediately across
the river and haB lte own munl~lpal
government and ir, Incorporated. Since
this ,BlAS~Ompsny’B OpelatiOnB 80 far
as Texas Is oonoerned is wholly vlth-
in the limits of an Incorporated town,
ve would like to know should they have
regular bus license or passenger ll-
come as is used on city busses in
other Texas tOmE?
"4. Another Bus Company operating from a
Texas Border Town to a I4exIooBorder
Town and owned by a resident of Texas
operates over several miles of hlgh-
wag before reaohIng the lQx100 Border
but doe8 not pa88 through any other
lnoorporated town In Texas. The Tom
In Xexloo Immediately aorta88 the border
Is Incorporated. Since there Is only
one Inoorporated town In Texas Involved,
should these bwsO8 have regular bus
lIoen8e or passenger llcelue?
"5. A large Bus Company, whose residence
IS out Of the state and vhone Opera-
tlonB are through many Incorporated
towns and BWeZV31 states before reach-
ing Texas, operates to only tineInoor-
porated tom In TOXa8 approximately
tventy miles within the State. Sims
there la only one Incorporated tovn
thrcugh vhloh these buses8 operate In
Texas but many others outside of the
state in which they operate, ve would
like to know If these busses should
have regular Texas bus plates or Texas
passenger car late8 for their opera-
tions In Texasf This oompany operates
a regular bus line, be- pernltted to
haul passengers originsting at any point
and destined to any point and have no
such reatrlotlon aa those in Questions
One and Two."
Honorable D. C. Greer, Page 4
Article 6679-1, Sections a, b, j, m. and n, Ver-
non’s Annotated Civil Statutes, respectively provide:
“(a) ‘Vehicle’ means every device ln, or
by vhlch any person or property Is or may be
transported or drawn upon a public highway, ex-
cept devices moved only by human power or used
exclusively upon stationary rails or traokr.
“(b) (Motor YehIole’ means every vehlole,
as herein defined, that Is self-propelled.
"
. . . .
"(j) *Passenger Car' meana any motor ve-
hicle other than a motor oyole or a bus, as de-
fIned In this Act, designed or Used primsrily
for the transportation of persons.
n
. , . .
“(m) lPublIc EIghvay' shall Include any
road, atreQt, way, thoroughfare or bridge in
this State not privately ovned or controlled
for the use of vehio~es over vhloh the State
hss legislative jurirdiotfon under it8 poll08
power.
"(n) 'Motor BUS' shall inoludtievery ve-'
hIole except those operated by muBcular power
or exoluBIvsly on stationary rails or tracka,
which 18 u8Od In transporting persons hetveen or
through two or more lnoorporated oltles and/or
tovna and/or villages for compensation (or hlreb)
whether opirated over fixed routes or othervise;
except such of Said vehloles as are operated ex-
clusively within the 1ImItB of Incorporated olt-
lea and/or towns or suhurhan additions to such
towns.
And Article 6675.3-2, Vernon~s Annotated Civil Stat-
utea, prOQide8, in part, as fOllOVB~
Honorable D. C. Greer, Page 5
"Every owner of a motor vehicle, trailer or
Bed-tI¶SilOr u8ed or to be u8Sd upon the public
hlghvayr of this State shall apply eaoh yew to
the State Highway Department through the County
Tax Collector of the county in which he I%sideB
for the registration of each such vehicle owned
or controlled by him for the enruIng or current
calendar year or unexpired portion thereof; pro-
vided that where a publla highway separates land8
under the dominion or oontrol of the owner, the
operation of a motor vehiole by suoh Owner, his
agents or employees, across such highway shall
not COnBtitUte a use Of 8uOh motor Vehicle upon
a pub110 hIghvuy of this State . . . ."
You will observe that Seablon n3 supra, provides
that "(Motor Bus' shall include every vehicle . . . vhIoh Is
UBOd in tlUBpOl’ting pWBOll~ betVeOll OX't h two or mere
Incorporated . . . . towns. iB iB the
test.
It follov8 in answer to your fIr8t two questions
t&t the bUBB~B in qUOBtiOll should have regular bUB liCWlBe8
as they PWB "through two or more Incorporated . . . tOVll8.”
With reference to yOur third, fourth, and fifth
~WBtiOM, We point Out that SeOtiOn 11,BUpm, pffvider that
Uotor.13uat shall lnolude every vehicle . . . . @=Ph-J1B
ours) and that In Seation a, sup~~cle' means eveF
device . . . tran8ported or drawn upon a
(IgrphaSiB OWE) "Public Highway" Is define
BUDXVSa. to "include any road, street, vag, thoroughfare or’
bridge in th%s State i , . i over vhloh~the St.&O has lOUis-
latlve jurisdio~under It.4polloe wver." (Ei$Gi%s .curs)
It Is Our oplnIoac therefore, that the Legislatu~
meant In Section n, supre, two or more Incorporated tovnp
a
In %xas It follows in answer to your third, fourth and
kstion8, that 8inOe the bu88e8 In qUeStiOn do not paBe
"between or through two or more Inoorporated oitles and/or
towns and/or villages" in Texas, they should be equipped with
psaenger car ~Iaenaes. They fall within the definition of a
*asenger car , Seotlon (j), supra.
Honoreble D. C, her, Page 6
Trunting this B~tiBf6OtOPi~~ ~8VO2’8 ~Olll’ f.ll- .
qulzy, we are
Yours very truly
ATTORRBY IBSERAL OF TXh0
BY
Fred C. Cbfindler
_.- Aasiatant
By .
ENmff