Quote:
Originally Posted by rhsgypsylady
I agree. No one without a driver license should be able to drive golf carts. They are not a toy! I would think for safety reasons The Villages police departments should put a stop to such and issue fines to the parents/grandparents allowing those without license to drive. I also think insurance should be carried on ALL golf carts just as if they were a street legal vehicle (whether they are or not).
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Several problems here. As was said previously, it is State law. So long as the youngster is not on a public streeet, there's not much the police can do about it -- any more than they can give speeding tickets to those on golf cart paths. Insurance would be nice, but, again, is an issue for the State to take up. Of course, that means the golf cart will have to be registered, which would be another fee.
Personally, I don't mind a child driving the cart through a neighborhood that has little traffic with an adult in the cart as well. I do mind, tremendously, seeing a kid driving on Morse or around the squares or anywhere there is heavy traffic. I mind seeing youngsters driving on the golf cart paths because there is a bit of traffic, crossing of streets, etc.
Having said this, there is no way my grandson would be allowed to drive my cart before he was 14 (especially not on my lap). At 14, he would have to be fully supervised by me and it would only be where I know there is light traffic. Driving alone would be determined by how I felt he was handling the cart, watching traffic, willingness to follow rules (mine and traffic), etc.; it would have nothing to do with his simply being over 14 and everything to do with his level of maturity and driving ability of a cart.
When we first moved here, my daughter had her license and was well over the age of 14 (she could legally live here). Even so, I did not allow her to drive the cart on Morse, Canal or BV until she had driven the neighborhood streets and I felt (not she thought) she was truly comfortable in how a cart handled. (I did the same thing to myself for the first 2-3 weeks of having a cart available.)