Cart Path Striping
 

It would be interesting as to how many residents would like the cart paths striped in order to allow for better vision at night and in the rain.? As I understand it the Developer's people, (e.g.Supervisors, Village Mgt, etc) would not like it. I would not speculate as to why since I can see no reason for their denial of this critical safety requirement. To draw an analogy it would be like taking all striping off of the major highways becasue they "don't look" real good. How many driving home at night in the dark or rain feel safe trying to keep your cart on the path. District 4 did stripe their cart paths and I first noticed it one evening when driving our cart through Dist. 4 and it seemed so much safer. What is the motivation for this denial of a critical safety need? It can't be costs since the estimated cost is about 25 cents for each household every 5 years. I am at a loss to understand why this need is being killed by the Village Management or the Developer? Weird and strange no matter how you look at it. Can anyone point to a valid reason bearing in mind the same logic would be used to wipe off all striping on major roads/highways??:ohdear:

I don't believe it's the "Developer" or the District management that are the issue.

It's the individual CDD supervisors that can't agree. Some of these folks are elected by us to represent us. So, for the most part, I think it's a resident issue of not wanting to spend the money.

However, The District would rather put white strips on the edges of the cart paths, rather than a center stripe. I believe that would be better too, for visibility at night and in the rain.

I sent a note to my CDD Supervisor expressing my displeasure of not having striping, as in CDD 4.

Perhaps, if everyone contacted their individual CDD representation via email, something might happen.

Totally agree with the reflective white stripping on the edges so you can see the outer edge. Remember keep to the right. The yellow lines in the middle won't last and really won't help as much. Look what happened to all the reflectors that were paced in the middle. How many of them disappeared. I would support the outer edge put thing the yellow is a waste of money. JMO

I agree.....at night and in rain I drive by the outer edge....that makes the striping in the middle less important. I will concede that there are those that can't or feel uncomfortable using the outer edge as a guide. That's also one of the reasons drivers stay in the left lane on highways, they feel more comfortable looking out the left side of their car.

I like the idea of the reflective white stripes on the sides because at night or in the rain you will know where the edges are. And to the supervisors of CDD 7, if you are representing us how about sending out a poll to get our opinion on this.

It seems that they were glued down with a glue that doesn't work. Many slipped or slid out of place. They need a nail or screw to hold them. I liked them for the sharp turns that helped drivers stay in their own lane.

Ever think of actually contacting them?

Anyone wanting to contact their District Supervisor can go here, look up your district and then send an email to the chairman...

VCDD Your Community District

Let’s forget about striping the roads and instead invite Google to test their Google Self-Driving Car in TV using our golf carts instead of cars. It will happen sooner than later.

If we were
 

If we were to put white stripes down the side as suggested by some including I believe the Village Management and Supervisiors then taking that logic as a basis for the decision we would have the Highway Dept.s just paint the side of the Highways and remove the stripes down the center. That is not only illogical but totally opposite to what the US Highway system has adopted. As far as the cost is considered I would restate that the cost to CCD 4 is around 25 cents for each house hold every 5 years. Making cost a factor in the decision is not really something that should even enter into the equation?
As I have said, I can't for the life of me understand why there is such objections from the Village and the Supervisiors. It is folly to deny that the Supervisiors are spokespersons for the Village Management and the Developer. In fact the Village manager attended some CDD meetings and spoke out against the center stripes. That should speak for itself. :ohdear:

Intermodal paths aren't highways and carts aren't doing 80 MPH.....you might want to take a ride outside TV and some of the non-highway roads....not all are stripped. You want stripes, others don't think they are needed and that is what the debate is about. The only thing lacking on either side is facts about the accident rate, injury rate, number of vehicles that have run off the road etc. So far, the discussion on here is subjective....as I suspect are the discussions at the CDD meetings. Also, accusing people of being illogical because they disagree with you is a tad rude.....as I remember, Spock was the only credible authority on logic Captain......:icon_wink:

I believe the best answer would be stripping the sides with white highway paint ,get rid of those reflectors ,there are people that are so afraid of running the reflectors over that they force me to dodge to the side when I am walking or jogging,many times there are shrubs where am I to go, If you are a runner you know what I mean,these are multimodal trails . Put up signage to remind people that these ARE multimodal trails and not golfcart paths as the signs state on the trails around Brownwood.

7:28 tee time on Evans Prairie, Santo Domingo to the golf course. 45 minute trip to arrive by 7:15 am. Foggy, dark, poor cart lights, no stripes on the cart path. Try that and then tell me we don't need a well marked cart path! It's scary!!

Take a sheet of paper and write down 5 reasons painting stripes can be bad, then write 5 reasons it is good. The simple answer is, if it didn't improve safety then why do we paint lines on our streets and highways.

Thankful
 

I am thankful to those who understand the rationale behind the striping and have taken the time to express their support. I have not seen an input that counters the logic in support of this safety meassure. Regarding the term "illogical" as being rude. Actually it is a characterization that supports a certain line of argument and is definitely not "rude". There would be no college debate teams if this were to be construed as "rude or disrespectable".
I would hope more will see the advantages of having more safety for carts than status quo or a form of patch safety to satisfy some minimum addition.:ohdear:

I don't care if the paths are striped or not. But face it, striping will not correct the real problem....the drivers. Maybe the best answer is to require vision testing for golf cart drivers. If you can't see well enough to navigate the paths you shouldn't be driving.

Which is exactly what I meant.....you are thankful to those that understand the rational and have accepted no input to those that find it unnecessary. That's what's rude.....in college debates the other side is respected and not admonished because one side believes they are illogical. If you feel strongly, then take the lead, assemble your constituents and become political active and vocal at the meetings. I would believe that if you assembled the facts, accidents, injuries, damages etc they would listen. Here it's just an opinion.

You will notice that they also put white stripes on the edges. When I learned to drive, back in the early 60's I was taught that you judge your position by the sides of the road. Besides, the MMP's aren't roads. Just to be clear, I have nothing against stripping the road, just don't know that it will make that much of a difference. I agree with other poster, the issues are really the drivers, not the paths. Just because you can do 20 MPH doesn't mean you should always do 20 MPH.

Multi Modul Path.....yah, right!
 

My friend and I just had a very interesting experience on the "multi-modul path" over by 466 and Belevedere. Two bicyclists
(man and women) were riding in front of us. My friend passed them as they were the slower traffic. When we came to the stop the man intentionally hit her from behind and the woman yelled at her. My friend did nothing wrong. There was plenty of time to pass. No wonder no one wants to share the road with these so called "jerks". I told the lady we passed her because she was the slower traffic and she flipped us off and yelled "go to h---". NICE, real class!

I would say that if you have not driven the MMP where the stripes are one has nothing to offer but an unfounded opinion.

I drove to go to Oakleigh today and encountered the stripes for the first time. There is absolutely no doubt what so ever the center line does in fact have more people staying to their side of the road. It is also obvious it induces one to slow down on the curves....they can no longer go as fast as possible and swing way out to compensate for the speed.

My conclusion after a day time encounter is to stripe all MMPathways.

I will formulate an opinion that the driving at night would only further convince one of the value of the striping for the sake of safety.

Now if you have not driven where the stripes are...leave the keyboard for a few minutes and go get a firsy hand experience!!

I would say these words to any of the development folks....there is no way they can have a valid position if they have not driven both day and night!!

When its raining and dark, you might want to consider staying home or "God forbid" take your car. That said----(as already pointed out) the problem with attempting to be more objective on this issue is the lack of data. I don't think there is any collected.

Perhaps stripping would help---the cost is minimal so why not? I would like to see more "things" done the democratic way---TAKE A VOTE of all the residents in the CDD. And require a 60% majority for action.

These white stripes on the sides of roads are often referred to as "fog lines". They are very useful in fog or in heavy rains to keep you on the road.

I think that center line striping is a total waste of money. If any striping is necessary, it would be on the sides of the path.

Taking a vote of everyone is not the democratic way in this case. We have a form of government here with the CDD's. And in each district there are representatives that were elected by the villagers in each district. After THEY receive input from residents concerning various topics, THEY will decide, we elected them to do just that.
And I think those duly elected, in most cases view the question of MMP striping with apprehension. It's striping now, then what is next? Speed bumps, street lights on the paths, flashing caution lights at every entrance to the tunnels, etc.??? The way it works is let your Reps know how you feel, lobby them if you like, then accept their decision.

Bagboy makes a good point, the decision should be made by the.CCDs. In this thead there is a posting of how to get ahold of the representative for your area. If you are in favor of the stripes let them know. That being said, what is it going to take to get people to act? Posting on this forum is good that many views are being expressed. Will it take a terrible accident? Safety of all using the multimodal paths should be a priority. Much more than say an indoor pool....

OK
 

I am not concerned for my well being driving the cart paths as I feel rather confident I will be a good enough driver to be safe. Having said this I am not as sure for the residents who are vision challenged, or not really good at navigating
in poor weather conditions or after dark or during the evening when the bars close and there are some "drunks" on the paths. I actually care for our residents and their safety and believe striping will give them an added protection. So far I have not seen one alternative that would provide more maximum protection. I remain convinced there continues to be a risk that is being argued for reasons i can't understand. :ohdear:

The striping was done in the past, it didn't last long. It turned out to be a lost cause.

I honestly don't understand the reluctance of some residents to striping the MM trails. Certainly, there are some that never go out after dark in their carts...

By all estimates, we have approximately 30,000 to 50,000 golf carts running around TV. These carts are driven by full time [long time] residents, Full time [new] residents, visitors, Lifestyle visitors, seasonal residents and sometimes, our Grandchildren, who are old enough to drive. There simply is no place like this, anywhere in the world.

Currently, there are lots of places with stripes or reflectors....the Morse bridge has a stripe all the way across. Does it not help keep folks on their side of the road? Do you not feel a little safer, especially after dark? The wooden bridge by Morse and 466 has reflectors down the middle and on either side to make visibility better on that bridge at night....a huge help!

So, slowly, we are getting striping or reflectors, but in a piecemeal fashion. I'd prefer that TV look a little more planned and consistent from one CDD to the other.

I have contacted my CDD Supervisor with my wishes, I recommend you do the same, if you truly want change.

Take El Camino
 

I just drove (by car) down El Camino Blvd and it has stripes down the middle of the road. Reduce the car sizes by about 65-75%, build a road for them and you have El Camino for golf carts. Does anyone know the difference as to why it is good for that Blvd and not for golf carts that pass within a foot or so on the cart paths at night and in the rain without any markers? The real question is why the Village Management and Developer is against them? It would honestly be helpful to have this answer since it is absolutely not obvious?:ohdear:

On a semi-related note: Why is there no signage anywhere in the entire region related to golf cart speed limits? I have been given to understand that the limit on shared highways is 19 mph for non street legal carts, but have read it nowhere. I know for a fact (Speedometer app) that the last time I had my cart serviced by Villages Golf Cars, the governor was set to 25-26 mph by the tech! How does a renter who gets the keys to the rental and to the golf cart know how much it could cost them to be ticketed doing 24 on a public road? If ticketed, it would seem to me that it would be strange for a judge to fine one for obeying the only posted speed limit posted anywhere in the Villages , i.e. 35 mph. If the 19 mph number is correct, I can assure you that it is the most violated law in Sumter County, lol!

As a recent user of the striped cart paths and the non-striped cart paths, I like the striped paths. It seems to help when passing oncoming carts. Both drivers know immediately where their path ends and the others begins. If it works for automobiles, it should work for golf carts. I really don't get how some can be so adamantly against it.

I have also wondered about the golf cart speed limit. Never did understand how an automobile and another vehicle type could have different speed limits on the same roadway. Do bicycles, or roller blades, or motorcycles have different speed limits, also?

Sure not doubting your Villages Golf Cars experience. I recently had my cart serviced there and they called me and said they would NOT service my cart until the governor was adjusted down to around 20 mph, which I told them to do. I think the tech might get into hot water if this is disclosed to his boss. As for Villages rentals, seems to me they are set at 9 mph. Well, maybe a little more.

If that's their policy, they won't be getting my business.

To this day I have yet to hear why the extra 2-5 mph above the LEGAL golf cart speed limit is such a neccessity for some? Every cart that ever passes me I usually am right behind them at the next stop/cross walk.

At 60 mph at the end of an hour one would be one mile ahead. At 1/3 that speed (20 mph) one would be approximately 1500 feet ahead. At 24 mph (4 mph over the LEGAL speed limit) one would be a mile ahead.......after ONE HOUR!!!!! And most of us travel maybe 15 -30 minutes in our carts going from point A-B!!!!!!

So breaking the law and going faster than everybody else while passing to get one cart ahead by the next stop light is needed WHY?

Hat's off to the service departments that refuse to service ILLEGAL carts!

I suspect it's because other motorized vehicles have federal safety standards that must be met. Golf carts don't have crash tests, braking standards or visibility standards. Bikes and roller blades or skate boards are not motorized. Was at a presentation by the sheriff's department last week.....first offense being handed out for speeding is $560.00 fine, second offense is another fine and up to 6 months in jail (same as electrical box activity). Insurance may not pay if an accident occurs and the governor is set above what is needed for 20 MPH. Having said all that, I have yet to see or experience enforcement and suspect that unless it is tied to DUI the sheriff doesn't pay a lot of attention to golf cart speed.

Probably a liability issue. Since everyone sues everyone and they know the laws and they willfully work on an illegal cart they could be drawn in when the lawsuit begins.

Oh, but he does.

https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...t-story-75452/
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...t-paths-89384/
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...rcement-89653/
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...art-law-14301/
https://www.talkofthevillages.com/fo...tickets-71803/

The Florida Statue pertaining to unregistered motor vehicle speak to the issue of golf carts and their speed. So a golf cart not registered and traveling over 19.9mph is speeding and since that is the case posting a speed limit ona multi-modal path is redundant.

I travel often pre dawn and i can tell you the reflectors alone are a God sent. Reflector at either edge of a multi-modal path wold be a benefit. A center line also would be helpful. Here is why. Pre-dawn or at dusk and beyond headlights from golf carts and autos on adjacent roads (Buena Vista, etc) can blind a cart driver. Indeed I have been so blinded that a pedestrian disappears momentarily. It is why I never travel more than 16mph with little daylight.

an often sight is a golf cart driving practically in the middle of a multi-modal path. Why because the driver is accustom to pedestrian and does not want to stop behind them.

I recall one poster who claimed that he wasn't worried about himself because he was an excellent driver but rather worried about other drivers.................well you know where I am going with this story so I'll stop

Thanks......good information and nice to know they are enforcing. Could use more of it.