HomeMy WebLinkAboutDocumentation_Workshop_Tab 02_06/04/2018 Use of Golf Carts upon Designated Village Streets
Village Ordinance Sec 46-2
FSS 316.212
Question: whether or not to expand the operating area for golf carts to include
roadways east of Tequesta Drive Bridge to railroad tracks, and include Tequesta
Drive and Tequesta Drive Bridge.
Currently: Golf carts are currently allowed to operate on Village roadways west of
the Tequesta Drive Bridge, except on Tequesta Drive. Operator must be at least
16 years of age and possess a valid driver's license. Golf carts must be properly
equipped per FSS 316.212.
Benefits: �
• lncrease mobility and use of golf carts for residents.
o Village events
o Village businesses
o Village parks
• Decreased fuel use and ernissions (if electric}
• Slower traffic (Benefit and Concern)
Concerns:
• Golf cart traffic on major arteries of the Village
o Tequesta Drive
o Seabrook Rd
• Posted 30mph speed limit on certain roads (legal speed 35mph and
enforceable speed 40mph)
o Tequesta Drive
o Seabrook Rd
• Crossing Tequesta Drive Bridge .
o Bridge obstructs clear line of sight with potential of motor vehicle
toping Tequesta Drive Bridge to find slow moving golf cart in
roadway
o Tequesta Drive Bridge is a "Pinch Point"
• Golf cart equipment concerns
o Speed capability
o Lack of brake lights
o Lack of turn signals
o Lack of seatbelts
o Lack Child restraint
o Proper tire type, tread, and inflation
o Lower ground clearance
o Lower visibility
o Lack of insurance
o Lack of protection in crash
o Lack of anti-theft devices (residents are inattentive and neglectful
with keys and valuables left in vehicles)
• Misuse
� o Operators will push boundaries (as they do now) and cross railroad
tracks and Old Dixie Hwy
, o Operators will confuse Village roadways with neighboring
jurisdictions and be in violation of state statute
• Parking
o On road
o Off road
o Vehicle parking spots
o Non designated areas
• Liability
o Motor vehicle/golf cart crashes
o Golf cart (silent vehicles)/pedestrian crashes
o Golf cart (silent vehicles)/bicycle crashes
o Single vehicle (golf cart) crashes
o Injuries due to falling out of golf carts
o Increased impaired use of golf carts
o Cases of lack of enforcement (as previously seen)
• Lack ofinfrastructure
� o charging stations
o public parking
o security
• Vehicle identification
o No registration tags
Possible contingencies
� Only on weekends
• No open alcoholic containers
• Child restraint requirements
• Seatbelt installation requirements
• Special lighting requirements (flashing roof light/strobe)
• Special parking requirements (designated parking spots or areas only)
• Insurance requirements
• Extensive fines based in ordinance for violations ($500+)
• Decrease posted speed on roadways to 25mph (expensive—requires traffic
studies and FDOT approval)
• Allow sidewalk use (expensive—requires minimum 8' wide sidewalks and
FDOT approval) also increased liability
Atternatives
• Residents already have the capability of equipping and registering their
vehicles as low speed vehicles under FSS 316.2122
. o As defined in FSS 320.01(41)
o Minimum top speed 20mph
o Maximum top speed 25mph
o Resolves most concerns previously listed
5/24/2018 Statutes&Constitution:View Statutes:Online Sunshine
Select Year: 2017 � Go
The 201� Flarida Statutes
Title XXIII Chapter 31b View Entire Chapter
MOTOR VEHICLES STATE UNIFORM TRAFFIC CONTROL
316,2122 Operation of a low-speed vehicle or mini truck on certain roadways.—The operation of a low-
speed vehicte as defined ir� s. 320.U1 or a mini truck as defined in s. 320.Q1 on any road is authorized with the
following restrictions:
j 1) A !ow-speed vehicle or mini trurk may be oper�ted only on streets where the posted speed timit is 35 miles
per hour or less. This does not prohibit a low-speed vehicte ar mini truck fram crassing a raad or street at an
intersection where the road ar street has a posted speed limit of more than 35 miles per haur.
fZ? A law-speed vehicte must be equipped with headlamps, stop lamps, turn signal lamps, taiElamps, reflex
refEectors. parkin� brakes, rearview mirrors, wrndshietds, seat betts, and vehicle identification numbers.
(3� A I,ow-speed vehicle or mini truck must be registered and insured in acc�rclance with s. 32Q.02 and titled
�ursuant to chapter 314.
�4) Any persan aperating a low-speed vehicle o�-mini truck must have in his or her passession a valid driver
ticense.
(.5) A county or municipality may prohibit the aperatinn of low-speed vehicles or mini trucks on any road under
its jurisdiction if the govern�ng body of the county or municipality d�terrnines that such pra�hibition is necessary in
the interest of safety.
(61 The Departsnent of Transportatian may prohi�it the operation of law-speed vehicles or mini trucks on any
road under its jurisdictian rf it determines that such prohfbition is necessary in the interest af safety.
HisYory.-s. �, eh. 94-1b3: ,. 5, ch. Z009�183: s. 85. ch. ZQt2-174: s. 78, eh. 2Q13-160.
Capyright � 1995-201$The Fiarida Legislature • Privacy Staternent • Contact Us �
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http.i/www.leg.state.Fl.uslStatutes/index.cfm?mode=View%20Statutes&SubMenu=1&App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=low+speed+vehicles&URL=030i
Select Year: 2017 �,� Go �
The 201� Florida Statutes
Title XXIII Chapter 316 Vi�w Entire ChaRter
MOT�R VEHICLES STATE L'NIFQRM TRAFFIC CONTRc�L
316.212 Operation of golf carts on certain roadways.--The operation of a ;olf cart upon rhe
public roads or streets of this state is prohibited except as pravided herein:
(11 A golf cart n�ay be �perated only upon a county road that has been desianated t�y a county, a
municipal street that has been desiqnated by a muni�ipality, or a two-lane caunty road located v�iithin
the jurisdiction of a municipality desi,nated by that municipality, fvr use by �olf carts. Prio��to makin�
such a designation, the responsible locat ;overnmentai entity rnust first ��termine that;otf c�;ts may
safely eravet on or-cross the pubtic raad or street, cpnsidering factors including the speed, va4um�, an�
character of motar vehicte traffic usin� the road or street. 1lpo�� a determir�ation that golr carts snay be
sarely operatzd on a desi;nated road or street, the respansible govemmentat entity shail post
appropria[e si�ns to indicate that such operation is allowed.
t2� A�otf cart nzay be operated on a part of the State Hi,hway Syst�m only urder the followin�
conditians:
Ia) T�a cross a portian of the St�te �i�hway SyStem wF�ir.h intersects a counry road ar municipaf
street that ha� be�n des�;naced for use by golf carts if th� pepartrr�ent of�rans�ortation ha3 +��vie��ec�
and approveci tf�e locatiQn and desian of the crossino and any traffic c�«tro[ devices needec! for safety
purposes.
(b) Ta cross. at midbtock., a part of the State Highway$ystem wher�a �olfi course is canstruc.ted on
both sides of the hi;h�rray if the De�arcment c?fi Transportatic�n has re��iPweS� ���d approved [he I.c�r_ation
and design of the crossrn� and any traffic control devices needed f�r safety pur�oses.
jcl A galf cart may be operated on a state road that has heen desi;n�ted far transfer to a tocal
government unir. pursuanr. to s. 335.0415 if the Department of Transpc�rtat.ic�n determinPs tl-�at thr
operation of a �olf cart withir� the right�of-way of the road wiU. not irnpede the safe and �fficient Plow of
motor vehicufar traffic. The department may authorize the uperation c}f;alf carts on such a r�ad �f:
1, The raad is the anty availablE puFli.ic road alon;which gc�tf carts may travel ar crass or thF road
pravides the safest r.ravel route aman; alternativ� routes availahle: and
2, The speed, volume, and character of motar vehicular traffic usi�-�g the rc�ad is cc�rtsidered ir�
making such a determinatian.
Upon its dPt�rn�inatian Chat golf carts may be aperated art a ;iv�n r��ao. r.he departm�nr shali post
apprt�priate si;ns �n th2 road t� ir�di�,ate that s�ch aperatior� is at[owed�
(3 j Notwithstandrna �ny other provisiar� of this section. � ;��f cart rria�r k�� o�et-at2d tar Che purpase
c�f erassin� a street ar hi;hwa.y where a single mobile hame park is Lo�a.t�r� on both sic�es of rhe street or
highway and is divided by that street or� hi;hway, provided t!'�aC th��overrimental. entity havin; ori�ir�al
jurisdicr.ion over ;uch street �r hi;hway shall review and aaprov� the l.acatic�r; �f rhe crossrng an;i
require implementat�on �f any traffic controts needed for safety purpos�s. This subsecti�n sf�all a�pty
only to residents or guests of the mobite home park. If notice is posted at the entrance and exit of a�y
mobite home park where residents of the park operate golf carts or e[ectric vehicles within the cc�nfines
of the park, it i5 not necessary for the park to have a 6ate or other device at the entrance and exit in
order for such golf carts or electric vehicles ta be lawfulty operated in the park.
I4) Notwithstanding any other provision af this section, if authorized by the Divisian of Recreation
and Parks of the Department of Environmental Protectian, a ;olf cart may be operated on a road that is
part of the State Park Road System if the posted speed limit is 35 mites per hour or tess.
(5) A;olf cart may be operated onty durin; the hours between sunrisz and sunset, unless the
responsible gavernmentat entity has determined that a ;otf cart may be operated durin; the hcurs
betvreen sunset an� sunrise and the golf carr. is equipped with headlights. brake lights, turn si;nals, a��d
a windshietd.
(6) A golf cart must be equipped with efficient brakes, reliable steerin; apparatus, safe tires, a
rearview rnirrer, �nd red reftectarized warnin; devices in both the feont and rear.
t7) A golf cart may not be c�perated on publit roads or streets by any�erson under the a;e of 14. �-�e� ��)
i8D A local governmental entity may enact an ordinance relating to:
{a) Gotf cart aperation and e�uipmznt which is more restrictive thart thos�enumerace� ir� this
�ectian. Up�n �naciment ot s�.�ch ordinance, the local. ;overnmentat entity shaU. post a.ppropriate signs
or othen,wfse infarF� the residents that sa�.:h an ordananc� exists and that it wilt be enf"orr_eci withir� the
locat ;overnment's jurisdictiona! territory. An �rainance referred to in this sectio��� n�ust apply only t�an
unlicensed driver�.
ibi GoEf cart operation an sidzwalks adja�ent to specific se;ments of municipal streets, caunty
roads, or state hi;hways within the jurisdictianal territory af the local ,overnmental entity if:
1. The locat governmenta! ertCity determines, after considerin� the condition and cur��ent use of the
sic�evfalhs, the character �f the s!ir�ro�.andin� C�i�tmuC�ity, a��ci the locations of a�ithorized ;of.f cart
crossings, that golP carts, bicycles, and pedestrians may safe[y sh�re t�e sidewalk.:
Z. The local gavernmental entity consults with the Department of�ran�portation before adopting
the Qrdinance:
3. T(�e ordinar�ce restricts ;olf carts ta a maximum speed of 15 mites per nour and permfts such use
c�n sidev�alks adjacent to s[ate highways ar,ty ii the side�realks are at least 8 feet wide:
4. The ardinance requtres the�olf carts ta meet r_he equf�ment requiremenCs in subsect�on �6j.
Mowever, the ordrnance may require �dditianal equipment, inclucitna homs or orher warnin; devices
required by s. 316.271; and
5. The local �overnmental entity post� appropriate signs or otherwise infarms resident� E:har the
ordinance exist� and applies ta suc.h sid�watks.
(9► A violation �f this sec�ion is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable pursuant to chapter 3�18
as a moving viotation for infractions of�ubsections �1 j-(5) or a iocat crdinance correspflnding th�reto
and enacted pursuant to subsection (8), or punishable pursuanr_ Co chapter 318 as a nomm�vin; viotation
Tor infracticns �r subsection (61, subsecti�n (7), or a lo�a! ordinan�� c�reesponcjing ihereto �n� enacted
pursuant to subsection (8>.
FEistory.—s. 2,ch. �3-1�8: s. 1. �.F�. °4 lt I, �.2.c�. 38•2�3; s. 32?. c.r:. q5.1qg: s. S. c{-. g6 413:s. ?5$. ch. 44-�4u: �. ?.
C`•'. LOOO'��3: s. 6. ch. 2�7Q5-t64; �. ;: ch. 2008-95: s. �b, �^. 2Ctv-'23: s. 2. ^h. 2�1S-tb3.
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5/24l2018 Tequesta,FL Code of Ordinances
Sec.46-2.-Use of golf carts upon designated village streets.
(a) The Village of Tequesta hereby designates certain public roads or streets within the Viliage of
Tequesta for use by golf carts in accordance with F.S. §316.212.
(b) Pursuant to F.S. §316.212,the following shall apply to golf cart operation on designated
public roads or streets within the Village of Tequesta:
(1} Golf cart aperators must be a minimum o#16 years of age, hold and be in possession of
a valid driver's license issued within the United States,at afl times while aperating a golf
cart on Qublic roads.
{2} The number of occupants in any golf cart being operated within the viliage shall be
restricted to the number of seats on the golf cart. No occupants of a goif cart shall stand
at any time while the galf cart is in motion.All golf carts must be equipped with efficient
brakes, reliable steering apparatus, safe tires, a rearview mirror, and red ref(ectorized
warning devices in bath the front and rear. Golf carts operated between sunset and
sunrise on designated roads and streets shall also be properly equipped with
headlights, brake lights,turn signats and a windshield.
(c) Violations of this section are non-criminal traffic infractions punishable in accordance with
F.S. § 316.212.
{d) The Village of Tequesta Police Department shall post signs indicating those certain public
roads and streets within the village that have been designated for use by golf carts.
(Ord. No. 606, § 1, 8-17-2Q06; Ord. No. 14-13, § 1, 7-11-2013}
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5/24/2018 Safety Concerns Rise As Golf Carts Take to the Streets
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Safety Concerns Rise As Golf Carts Take to the Streets
By Donna Koehn�June 22.2010
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11 Comments(htYps://www.insurancejournal.cominewslnatianall201Dl061221110892.html?comments)
When Shannon Wiegert bought the new,bright red golf cart for scooting around car shows,he d;dn't think to ask about safety
features on the slow-moving vehicle.
And when his little girl begged his older daughter for rides around the neighborhood,he didn t bat an eye.Golf carts are common in
his Lakeland community;golf cart crossings dot the roads around the golf course nearby. He trusted Ashley, 17 with the family car,
so driving a golf cart seemed no big deal.
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But Gabriella.6.died of head injuries she suffered in April when she fell from the cart on a Friday afternoon ride.
https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2010/06/22/110892.htm ��6
5/24/2018 Safety Concerns Rise As Golf Carts Take to the Streets
When Wiegert flnds himself unable to sleep at night or blindsided by grief at work,he heads to the Internet to look for ways to keep
this from happening to other children.
What he has found is a jumble of national,state and local laws and ordinances;contradictory findings about safery:and a lack of
simple advice for parents on protecting children.
"Everybody says it's somebody else's responsibility,"he says.
Kristopher Seluga,a mechanical engineering and safety expert who conducts studies on golf cart safety,says he is frustrated every
time he reads of another death or injury to a child.
"In so many of the articles they use the term'freak accident," he says."IYs not. It happens all the time."
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Each year,about 13,000 golf cart-related accidents require emergency room visits,and that number is rising as the economical,fun-
to-drive carts become more popular on city streets,says Seluga,who analyzed statistics compiled by the U.S.Consumer Products
Safety Commission.
Of those accidents,about 40 percent involve children younger than 16,and half of those are due to a fall from a moving golf cart.
"That's a disproportionate amount of children,considering most golf carts are still used on golf courses by adults."says Seluga.who
works for Technology Associates,a Connecticut-based company that reconstructs accidents.
His studies, using golf carts and child-size crash dummies,suggest that many ejections occur during left turns.He says children are
susceptible to Falling because of their small size and center of gravity,and they aren't strong enough to hold on to railings that help
adults.
Additionally,the rading next to the seat on the passenger side acts as a fulcrum for children.causiny them to go up and over during a
left turn,making it more likely they will land on their heads,he says.
Gabriella died from brain injuries she suffered in the fall.
"I'm a strong advocate of seat belts for everyone, but especially for children,"Seluga says. 'I would Forbid anyone to ride whose feet
don t rest on the Floorboard."
Fred Somers, lawyer and secretary for the National Golf Car Manufacturers Association. says the Atlanta-based trade group
disputes the safety of seat belts on slow-moving golf cars—the industry term for the vehicles. He says people need to be able to
quickly jump out of a golf car in a rollover.
https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/naUonal/20 1 0/06/22/1 1 0892.htm 2�6
5/�4/2018 . Safety Concems Rise As Gotf Carts Take to the Streets
"If you're strapped in a golf car and it rolis over,you're going to be studc and crushed to death,"he says."if you're going to have seat
belts in a golf car,you'd better have a crush-proof qnopy."
There is a dearth of studies on the issue.One of the few is a 2008 report by the University of Alabama at Birrningham,published in
the American Joumal of Preventive Medicine,that showed that injuries involving golf carts increased 13Q percent ovet the past 17
years.Researchers attributed that to the rise in popularity of the carts on city streets.
Rollovers are most common on hilly gotf courses,not streets,and most of those involve a cart tuming on its side,not upside down,
safery experts say.
Street Yehicles
7he city of Palm Desert,Calif.,was a pioneer in the use of golf carts on city streets for ofder residents who winter there.!ts first
ordinance was created in 1974,and through the years the city has required the addition of safety features such as seat belts,tum
signals and brdke lights.
Mark Diercks,the city's transportation engineer,says goff carts with seat belts have proved safe,and rollovers have not been a
problem.
`"The only fatai accideht Involving golf carts that I am aware of in Palm Desert occurred on a golf course,late at night,involving some
very intoxicated individuais,"Diercks says."Seat belts were not invofved:'
5eluga,who tracks golf cart accidents,says he krrows of no deaths caused by rollovers in which people were using seat belts.He
agrees it would be impractical ta force golfers to use them on the golf coursa.
In 1997,aware that goif carts increasingty were migrating from golf courses onto city streets,the National Highway Transportation
Safety Administration created a new category catled Low Speed Vehicle to regulate safety.
Yhe vehicles are capable of reaching 20 to 25 mph,and include what the safety administration calls personal neighborhood vehicles,
neighborhood electric vehicles and goft cars.All are required to have seat belts and other safety devices.
However,golf carts that go slower than 20 mph—which are far less expensive and the kind most often used on the sheet—are not
regulated,unless state or local govemments set rules.Many of them are purchased second hand from gotf courses.
In Florida,anyone 14 or older may drive a golf caR,even without a driver's license.No seat belts or other safety features are
required,although driving is restricted to streets approved for golf carts by Iocal govemme�ks.
Communities with Carts
The retirement cornmunities of Sun City Center and The Villages of Florida conduct annuat inspections of golf carts,but require no
seat belts.All Sun City Center streets are approved for golf carts,although the carts are not allowed to make right or left tums onto
State Road 674.They may,however,fravel on a designated golf cart path alongside it and may cross it at three loca6ons.In March,
a path opened allowing carts to crass U.S.301 for access to a Walmart in Wimauma.
Some Davis Islands residents want the Tampa City Council to allow golf carts on their neibhborhood's roads for short rides inciuding
transpoRing chitdren to sports practices and games.Many people already use them for such purposes.The council will hear irom the
city attomey and police officials at its meeting June 24.
According to Somers of the golf car trade associabon,sales of the vehicles have shown a"tremendous uptick"because they are
economical,environmentally frlendly and easy to operate.Retirement communities and resorts were the first to fake the c�rts off the
golf course,but neighborhood use is spreading across the country.They also are used at businesses,apartment complexes,
colleges and on athletic fields. .
Somers also poinfed to a jump in sales due to tax credits created as par!of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
For Low Speed Vehicles purchased in 2009,up to$7,500 was offered by the federat govemmeM.LSVs bought from Feb.17,2009,
to Jan.1,2012,qualifjr for a 10 percent tax credit,up to$2,500.
Wiegert's daughter died after a fall from a golf cart incapabie of traveling faster than 17 mph—meaning his cart legally was sdd to
him withrwt safety features.Research shows children can fall from carts driven as stowly as 11 mph.
Wiegert says he never would have allowed his daughter in the golf cart ff he had any idea her life was in danger.He is frustrated by
the confusing regulations and lack of safety infoRnation.
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5/24/2018 Safeiy Concerns Rise As Golf Carts Take to the Streets
"The laws are just a mess,"he says."But fm not going to get discouraged."
He has been writing elected officials to ask them to pass stricter laws governing golf carts. He proposes three options: requiring seat
belts on all carts used off of golf courses, regardless of their top speed;requiring children to wear helmets while riding;or requiring
cart manufacturers to buiid a protective railing that would keep children from falling out.
"Gabriella wouldn't ride her bike without her helmet,and she even wore it when she went roiler skating,"says her mother,Heather
Wiegert.
On Thursday,the family received a shipment of inemorial bracelets they plan to sell to raise money for helmets.Also,an artist friend
has designed limited-edition sets oi a sterling silver bracelet,necklace and earrings that she will donate for fundraising.The jewelry
features a ladybug,which has sentimental meaning for the family.
Information on purchasing the items wili soon be available on the family's website at www.gabriellaslegacy.org/
(http://www.gabriellaslegacy.org/)index.php.The site also has an online petition that requests new regulations be instituted;it has
about 700 signatures from across the country.The Wiegerts and their friends have collected about 650 signatures on written
petitions,as well.
The Florida Assisted Living Association has raised 5850 to buy helmets and has set up drop-off sites for donations of new helmets.
Shannon Wiegert is executive director of an assisted-living facility in Lecanto.
Last week,Heather Wiegert opened an envelope filled with sympathy cards created by a fourth-grade class from Tampa.
"Sometimes it's things like that. little things,that keep me going."she says.
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Fort Myers to get tough on golf cart drivers breaking laws
Melanie Payn,e TELLMEL@NEWSPRESS.COM Published 2:16 p.m.ET Nov.2Q 201�!Updated 6:37 p.m.ET Nov.21,2015
A few years ago the city of Fort Myers paid$24,000 for a study evaluating a proposal to allow golf carts on local
roads and sidewalks.The study concluded widening sidewalks and posting signs on roads would cost more
than$1 million and the issue died.
�>
( Many residents in neighborhoods around McGregor Boulevard assumed that gave them permission to continue
j driving golf carts on city streets and sidewalks in violation of state law and city ordinances.
(Photo:File phofoJ That practice—which has gone on for decades and that one resident described as"the culture of Fort Myers"
—is about to change.The Fort Myers Police Department will begin enforcing the law.
IYs going to be a two-part process,said Central District Community Policing Coordinator Officer Glenn Eppler,starting with education and following up
with enforcement.
"Luckily for us,we can use discretion,"Eppler said.For example,cops won't bother a woman with her golf clubs on the back of the cart going to or from
Fort Myers Country Club,he explained."But if I get a kid on a golf cart, in the dark,going down Cortez(Boulevard),he's probably going to get stopped
and warned.The next time we stop him,he'll get a ticket."
Fort Myers residents are divided on the golf cart issue.
"No.Double-hell no.You can get on your bike or you can walk,"Thomas Chase said he told his kids when they asked for a golf cart after telling him"all
the coolest kids have one."
Chase said he's been on this issue for years and talked to every city council person he could,trying to get the law enforced.
"It seemed to abate for a while,"Chase said,of the golf cart usage."But in the past year I've seen a resurgence.One of these kids is going to pull out in
traffic and iYs going to be tragic."
"They are motorized vehicles,they go fast,they're top heavy and turnover-prone.They don't have seat belts and people don't wear helmets.When they
are thrown from them there's nothing protecting them from the ground,"said Dr.Andy Oaks-Lottridge,who lives off McGregor Boulevard in Fort Myers
and is president of the Lee County Medical Society.
A 2007 study looking at emergency department treatment of nonfatal golf-cart related injuries found a 132 percent increase nationwide over the 17 years
evaluated. Of the nearly 148,000 injuries, 15.2 percent occurred on streets or public property. Children younger than 16 accounted for 31.2 percent of all
golf-cart related injuries.
Fort Myers resident Jami McCormick said she wanted the city to establish rules related to the golf carts,not to ban them from the roads and sidewalks.
"I didn't want people misusing them,"McCormick said."When kids don't have any education about the rules and safety,then you have accidents."
Golf carts promote a sense of community,as McCormick described it.People ride around and visit neighbors.They go to the river and watch the sunset.
Kids carry their gear to the river to fish.
And she said,golf carts are a"green alternative." Why gas up a car to go a mile or two to a restaurant or high school football game,when you can go
there in a cart?
McCormick said the golf cart was a way for her son to hone his driving skills before getting behind the wheel of a car or truck. She began teaching him to
drive ihe goif cart when he was 11. 3y 13 he was given permission to drive on his nwn even though the legal age to operate a golf cart is 14. Her son
drives now,she said,and the cart wasn't being used. So she sold it.
Dennis Pearlman,a staunch golf cart supporter,got rid of his cart,too.Peariman said he anticipated a change in how people would be able to use it,
"and I needed to sell it before everyone else sold theirs."
Police ignored the law for years,and for them to start selective enforcement now,"iYs a littie irritating,"Pearlman said.
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IYs even more irritating for people such as my fiend and former colleague Francesca Donlan who,iwo months ago,purchased a$2,000 golf cart she
can't use in her neighborhood in Gateway or on surrounding roads.
We thought it would be fun to drive to get ice cream,pick up kids,go to the swimming pool.We had seen golf carts driving to the 7-Eleven,but iYs
actually illegal,"Donlan said."We've seen cops pulling people over on Gateway Boulevard."
Golf cart use is permitted in some communities in Lee County and on certain areas of Pine Island.And they are allowed on any street where signs
designate they are permitted.If Donlan lived in the Gateway neighborhood next to hers,for example,she couid have driven the cart around without a
problem.
Lt.Dennis Petracca of the Lee County Sheriff's Office said goif carts can be driven to commercial establishments adjacent to certain golf cart-legal
communities.Occasionally the sheriffs office gets a complaint about a golf cart driver.Sometimes the person complaining doesn't understand the laws.
When a cart driver is breaking the law,he or she is usually unaware of the rules and once informed there's no problem,he said.
Dan Moser,a founding member of BikeWalklee,a caa4ition advocating for public transportation,pedestrians and bicyclists in Lee County,is criticai of
what he sees as selective enforcement of the law.
"You know you couldn't have gotten away with this in Dunbar,"Moser said.But because it was people who lived on and around McGregor Boulevard the
law-breaking was tolerated.
Even to spend$24,000 on a study to determine what the city would need so that people could use the golf carts was"a ridiculous waste of money,"
Moser said.Changes in the infrastructure would have benefited only a small group of people who lived in a small area of the city.
Of the current education-enforcement program,Moser said iYs a good idea,"If they're going to be fair about it and be consistent"But he appeared
skepticat,adding,"We'll see what happens.We'll see how long it lasts."
Contact:Te!lMel@news-press.com(mailfo:TellMelCalnews-press.com),•(239)344-4772;2442 Martin Luther King Jr.8lvd.,Fort Myers,FL
33901.facebookcom/Tel/Mel(http://facebook.comlTellMel)and Twitfer.@tellmel(https://(witter.com/fe/lme!)
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