Gem cars

[DDoug]

I saw a Gem car(street legal) on the golf cart path going across Morse Blvd. bridge this morning. Do the people driving those think that s a good idea. Its tight enough on that bridge for 2 golf carts let alone putting a Gem car on there. I hate to say it but I think its time to figure out a way to police golf carts and street legals,especially the carts that are hopped up. I have carts pass me on Morse when I'm doing the speed limit of 30. It really is getting out of hand. If you want to go faster than 20 drive your car

[JourneyOfLife]

I am surprised that usage is not already restricted to certain classes of vehicles and size.

Not to mention speed limits!

[cquick]

I have a GEM. I haven't even considered going on the overpass from Spanish Springs. :22yikes:I worry just going on the bridge over Lake Sumter, those "golf cart" lanes are very narrow! Don't know who designed that bridge, but they should have gone back to civil engineering school!

GEM cars are supposed to go no faster than 25 MPH. If they are set faster than that, then somebody has been fiddling with the governor on the motor. They are NOT ATV's!

[USCGretired]

I have a GEM and have on rare occasion used the bridge on Morse when we want to go see the sunset over Lake Sumter. The bridge really is to small and I go slow, even stop if needed when a cart meets me on the bridge. Legally at least from what I gathered talking to the Sumter County Sheriffs department you can drive a GEM on any of the cart paths. My GEM goes 25 and I get passed by carts all the time, some are street legal and some are not.

[rhredd1654]

To answer the question about the speed of GEM's, they can be equipped with a factory 7.0hp engine which will increase the speed to over 25mph. The local dealer will also install an after market 7.5hp engine that is capable of speeds in excess of 35mph. The width of a normal golf cart is 46in...a GEM is 54in, which is why I never take mine on the Morse bridge or the golf cart bridge over 441.

[philnpat]

To answer the question about the speed of GEM's, they can be equipped with a factory 7.0hp engine which will increase the speed to over 25mph. The local dealer will also install an after market 7.5hp engine that is capable of speeds in excess of 35mph. The width of a normal golf cart is 46in...a GEM is 54in, which is why I never take mine on the Morse bridge or the golf cart bridge over 441.

If 2 Gems meet on the Sumter Lake bridge...will they fit? :shocked:

[TVMayor]

To answer the question about the speed of GEM's, they can be equipped with a factory 7.0hp engine which will increase the speed to over 25mph. The local dealer will also install an after market 7.5hp engine that is capable of speeds in excess of 35mph. The width of a normal golf cart is 46in...a GEM is 54in, which is why I never take mine on the Morse bridge or the golf cart bridge over 441.
That is some interesting trivia.

[Chazz]

If 2 Gems meet on the Sumter Lake bridge...will they fit? :shocked:

That must have happened, and probably more than once. I imagine that both drivers would have to be very careful.:pray:

It's not just the Gems that are wide, there are other street legal cars, such as the Ford Think clones that may be even wider. It's another reason for LSVs to stay on the road and avoid these sticky situations.

[Jim 9922]

[QUOTE=cquick;657505]."----- :22yikes:I worry just going on the bridge over Lake Sumter, those "golf cart" lanes are very narrow! Don't know who designed that bridge, but they should have gone back to civil engineering school!

/QUOTE]

The story I heard is that the cart path over the bridge was orginally designed to be wider but the local "bumblecrats" stuck in their noses and mandated the sidewalk to be widened. Rather than redesign the bridge and add to the cost, the developer just cut the golf cart path to the more narrow width. So now we all suffer. Probably someday there will be a serious sideswipe incident and the cart riders will fly over the protective curb and into traffic.

[Chazz]

/QUOTE]The story I heard is that the cart path over the bridge was orginally designed to be wider but the local "bumblecrats" stuck in their noses and mandated the sidewalk to be widened. Rather than redesign the bridge and add to the cost, the developer just cut the golf cart path to the more narrow width. So now we all suffer. Probably someday there will be a serious sideswipe incident and the cart riders will fly over the protective curb and into traffic.[/QUOTE]

I agree, and am surprised there hasn't been a fatality there, yet. There is a posted speed sign on the approach to each side of the bridge of 10mph, but it's never followed.