204                               Laws of Maryland                       [Ch. 166

(1956 Supplement), title "Crimes and Punishments", sub-title "Taxi-
cabs", be and it is hereby repealed and re-enacted, with amendments,
to read as follows:

627A. Refusal to pay fare.

Any person who engages and accepts transportation in public
taxicab or other vehicle operated as a common carrier, under any
conditions whereby the charge therefor is not paid in advance, and
who wilfully refuses to pay the proper charges at the conclusion of
such transportation, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and
upon conviction thereof shall be subject to a fine of not more than
fifty dollars for each such offense. Nothing in this section shall be
construed to prevent the owner or operator of any such common
carrier from making a special agreement with the person who en-
gaged and accepted transportation, for the subsequent payment of
the charges due. This section shall be effective only in Baltimore
[and] , Frederick and Talbot counties.

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall take effect
June 1, 1957.

Approved March 11, 1957.

CHAPTER 166
(House Bill 24)

AN ACT to repeal and re-enact, with amendments, Section 177 of
Article 66½ of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1951 Edition),
title "Motor Vehicles", sub-title "Operation of Vehicles Upon High-
ways", to remove from the statute the requirement that a slow
driver must first be warned by a peace officer before there is a
violation of the statute AND REQUIRING THAT A VIOLATION
OF THE LAW AGAINST SLOW DRIVERS MUST BE A WIL-
FUL ONE.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That Section 177 of Article 66½ of the Annotated Code of Maryland
(1951 Edition), title "Motor Vehicles", sub-title "Operation of Ve-
hicles Upon Highways", be and it is hereby repealed and re-enacted,
with amendments, to read as follows:

177. No person shall WILFULLY drive a motor vehicle at such a
slow speed as to impede or block the normal and reasonable movement
of traffic except when reduced speed is necessary. [Peace officers are
hereby authorized to enforce this provision by direction to drivers, and
in the event of apparent wilful disobedience to this provision and re-
fusal to comply with direction of an officer in accordance herewith
the continued slow operation by a driver shall be a misdemeanor.]

Explanation: Italics indicate new matter added to existing law,

[Brackets] indicate matter stricken from existing law.
CAPITALS indicate amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken out of bill.