General Information

Per Delaware statute (2 Del C, c. 18, §1801), to operate as a Public Carrier within the State of Delaware, a business entity must first obtain a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity from the Office of Public Carrier Regulation. A Public Carrier includes every individual, partnership, association, corporation, joint stock company, agency or department of this State, or any association of individuals engaged in the persecution in common of a productive enterprise (commonly called a ‘cooperative’), their lessees, trustees or receivers appointed by any court whatsoever, that now operates or hereafter may operate, within this State, any railroad, street railway, traction railway, taxicab, limousine, motor bus or electric trackless trolley coach service, system, plan or equipment for public use.

Services exempted from the Office of Public Carrier’s jurisdiction include: transportation to and from any school or school-sponsored event when such transportation is under the regulation of the Department of Public Instruction; transportation to and from a church, synagogue or place of worship; and shuttle-type transportation provided by business establishments without charge to customers of the business offering such shuttle transportation between fixed termini.

Public Carriers are regulated for the following reasons:

• To insure that a high level of quality service is given to the public.
• To insure that insurance coverage’s are maintained as required by statute.
• To insure that companies operating, as Public Carriers are financially able to compensate members of the public for injuries or damages sustained due to a Public Carrier’s acts or failures to act.
• To insure that vehicles operated by Public Carriers meet the appropriate Division of Motor Vehicles’ safety and decal standards, are neat and clean in appearance (interior, exterior and trunk area), and are inspected as required by the Division of Motor Vehicles (twice a year).
• To insure that the owners and their employees are of good moral character, do not have adverse driving records, and have not been convicted of a felonious or infamous crime involving fraud or deceit.
• To insure that Public Carriers are operating within the scope of authority granted by their Certificate(s) of Authority.
• To insure that Public Carriers maintain the proper records, and file reports and driver listings as required.
  

How to Operate a Public Carrier in the State of Delaware:

1. Obtain Certificate Of Public Convenience And Necessity
2. Obtain a Delaware Business License
3. Register Vehicles with the Division of Motor Vehicles

Important Numbers and Information

To obtain a Delaware Business License, contact the Division of Revenue by calling: 744.1085 (Dover), 856.5358 (Georgetown), and 577.8200 (Wilmington).

To register your business with the Delaware Secretary of State, contact the Division of Corporations at 302.739.3073.

Information on operating interstate (crossing state lines) may be obtained from the:

U.S. Department of Transportation,
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
300 S. New Street, Suite 2101
Dover, DE 19904
302.734.8173