Golf Carts Are Not Toys
 

another golf cart accident--Parents loaned a golf cart to their son--he ran the cart into a tunnel wall, he and his two six year old daughters were transported to Ocala Regional--the cart didn't have seat belts--

While I would personally like to see mandatory seat-belts, for children as a minimum, I'm not ready without further info...to say the adult son was treating the cart "like a toy." :oops:

I once did an informal count of carts with seat belts. My wife was driving our cart when we were going to Lake Sumter Landing. I counted every cart we met and kept a separate list of how many had seat belts fastened. There was a whopping 10% of all carts we encountered!
I know it's not scientific but is indicative.

There seems little reason not to have seat-belts on a new cart as standard.

It adds a relatively small amount to the cost, but not as much as retrofitting them, and if all suppliers are persuaded to install them...

When we bought our golf cart, we had seatbelts added. It cost $200 extra. Seemed like a small price to pay for peace of mind.

Talk about stories being spun
 

The son who borrowed the golf cart had two kids and was listed as being 39.

I can't imagine how he hit the wall of the tunnel hard enough to cause injury unless he hit the entrance, it would just be a glancing contact.

As to seat belts. That has long been debated. Unlike your automobile a golf cart does not a passenger compartment designed to protect you. You do not have standard items such as airbags or a collapsing steering wheel. Most of them only have brakes on the rear wheels. Many of the seat belts are not properly secured to the golf cart and will simply tear out if needed.

Perhaps, an opportunity for all of us to think. Two golf carts, each going at the LEGAL 20 mph speed, it they hit head on it is a 40 mph crash.

Confession-we use our golf cart regularly around the Villages it is set at the LEGAL 20 mph and we are regularly, safe or not, passed by hotshots. We do have seat belts but they are unused. We do use our turn signals-do you?

Watching "grandparents" holding their (I assume) visiting infants in their lap while driving a wide opened cart or seeing 3 & 4 year old kids slumping in rear-facing back seats sometimes 3 across (even with belts which are totally useless for kids that size) and parents reaching over to "hold them in" won't help with forcing seat belts on every cart. We can't protect everyone from themselves and/or their own stupidity. Everyone complains about too many rules yet asks for a new rule for every dumbazz thing they see other dumbazz people doing. Dumb is dumb, stupid is stupid and just because a cart has a seatbelt doesn't mean they will be used. Can't protect everyone from themselves without having big brother watching us every single minute of our lives. Wait ..... ALEXA (or SIRI or GOOGLE), please turn down my thermostat 2 degrees.

The big question is: "Do your turn them off?" ;)

We do use our turn signals-do you?

There's an "off" switch?

Villages News June 25, 2019

Sledd, the son of John Daniel and Debra Sledd of 750 Rockingham Road, was totally ejected, the report said. He was transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center, having suffered “incapacitating” injuries, according to FHP.

The golf cart sustained an estimated $4,500 in damage. It had to be towed from the scene.

The investigator wrote in the report that Sledd had “operated motor vehicle in careless or negligent manner.”

Re: Turn signals
 

Yes, we do turn them off. We do not have the self cancelling signals but they are available.
Interesting to me. Our cart is 2014 and the device that causes the turn signals to blink is quite loud. Seems that the newer Yamahas have a much quieter,"clicker,"
As to turn signals. Like anything else, nothing is perfect. Golf cart or car, I wait long enough for the person signaling the turn to start the turn.
From my departed dad who taught me to drive always assume the other driver is going to do the stupidest possible thing because that is exactly what they are going to do. We all regularly see drivers looking for the right place to cause an accident.

I agree that the adults can make the decisions, ignorant as they may be, about the virtues of wearing seat belts. I disagree that they should be able to make that decision for children who are incapable of making safety decisions for themselves. Most of the injuries sustained here are not from head on collisions at 20MPH but by maneuvers that cause ejections, swerving to avoid, hitting curbs, or last minute decision turns. Seat Belts will mitigate those injuries. I personally would prefer to be restrained from ejection than miss my tee time.

I wonder
 

Your post is what my wife read to me. I wonder where,"an estimated $4500 in damages," comes from. That tunnel going to Brownwood, we regularly take it. You have, I would not, do not, people walking with no room to get away from carts as well as people on bikes.

"Negligent Manner," a polite way to describe it.

As to a solution, I think the lighting in those tunnels should be reviewed. I'm not certain as to what controls them. Time?
Ambient light? I also, suggest that people who insist on walking through those tunnels wear bright clothes. I regularly see people walking side by side dressed in black.

I must be the only person in TV who don't own or want a golf cart. These vehicles are designed to operate on a "Golf Course". Not being driven 25 MPH down Pinellas Place like I see almost daily.

You're not the only one, I like the protection & comfort of a real car

Goodness. I don't know what "incapacitating” injuries are other than paralysis, but all good wishes for the guy's recovery, and that of his child.

It's a reminder to all of us to be mindful when driving, walking, bicycling, etc., and not to get behind any steering wheel while impaired.

At this point in life I'm much more concerned about permanent injury than death. Even broken bones can be the start of a cascade of health problems and slow decline into nursing care.

No you are not, we have a golf cart that I use to get to the postal station on Pinellas Place and occasionally Collier. I also prefer the protection a car provides. I have been passed, when my golf cart speedometer indicates I am doing 20 mph, I have been in my car at 30 mph and been PASSED on the right by a golf cart! Over the last couple of weeks I have clocked several carts at 25 to 30 mph. Also, I have have several instances of golfers turning LEFT from the golf cart lane without looking directly in front of my car! I also get to watch the golf cart races from my back yard............

Should be a law requiring seat belts on any cart driving on a road. Our Florida law makers require them in cars yet you can ride in the back of a pickup truck in a lawn chair. Where is the logic with both these issues?

I felt the same during my Lifestyle visit. Those carts have bench seats and you slide across in a mild turn. No doubt any impact would launch you out of the cart.

A cart accident seems a likely a death sentence at our age.

Agreed which is why we have one like this. 3 point seat belts, real DOT approved automotive glass, doors etc.


atomic zipper - Google Search

Absolutely true as do swimming pools, Tide Pods, toys with small pieces, bicycles, small pieces of candy, tricycles pieces of ribbon and and and ad infinitum. The items are unsafe because the children need to be properly supervised and properly kept from using them incorrectly or at all. Any parent allowing a (what looks like in the photo) 8 yr old to drive one deserves to go to jail. Sometimes these articles overstate the obvious for clickbait.

Interesting, who sells,them?

:ohdear: From the online news Sept. 2016 -

A 77-year-old Villager has died of injuries suffered when his golf cart was hit by a pickup truck Monday morning near The Villages Regional Hospital.

S****** S****** had been at the wheel of a 2016 Atomi golf cart which was traveling eastbound on Bella Cruz Drive at the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 441 at 10:58 a.m., according to an accident report from the Florida Highway Patrol.

His golf cart was struck by a 1998 Dodge Ram pickup driven by Sxxx Pxxxxxx Dxxxxxx, 27, of Leesburg.

S****** was transported to The Villages Regional Hospital where he later died of injuries suffered in the crash.

:pray:

I have have several instances of golfers turning LEFT from the golf cart lane without looking.It seems to be happening more and more, so ya can't blame it on the snowbirds.:popcorn:

So, three years ago, one person was killed because his GOLF CART was hit by a PICKUP TRUCK, and you're implying that the brand of golf cart is unsafe because of that? Golf carts aren't known to be "safe" vehicles. Atomic carts have safety features that make them "less unsafe" than other carts. Doesn't make them safe, but it does make them less unsafe. It's a precarious distinction I know, but it's a distinction nonetheless. From what I've seen of them up close (a few, not a lot) they remind me in some ways of Smart Cars.

To the person who asked who makes them: They're made by Atomic, and sold by Atomic, of Wildwood Florida.

Regarding seat belts in carts: we will definitely want to have those added to our used cart once we get down there full time, but we're on a budget. Having a cart at all was the bigger priority. We got the best we could afford, and we'll be adding things when we have time and money to pay for the things that it didn't come with. I feel a bit nervous not being strapped in. I'm a cautious driver, never assuming the other guy has a clue and being pro-active with regards to my own safety. But me being a good driver doesn't prevent someone else from doing something stupid. And no matter how good a drive I may be, it would be dangerous to assume I'm not capable of flat out making a mistake. Once. In a lifetime. Maybe :)

I saw the end result of this accident before it was cleaned up. Any small vehicle would not have come thru this one as good as the Atomic Cart, IMHO The Pictures I saw in the paper were on the side of the Vehicle that was not hit. All these Golf Cart Incidents and Accidents should serve as a lesson to the rest of us. The side that got hit was Mangled.

Our Older kids can use our cart without the Grandchildren in them without exception to that POPPA made rule. The only one who transports the Grandchildren Is me and Slow Is The Way, Steady Is The Course. Seatbelt on and I hold the Cell Phone of ANY Passenger except The Boss. They have to concentrate and brace themselves for the unknown.

Our drivers in The Villages with all their shortcomings, me included are way better than the ones we are accustomed to where we did live before and they carry guns down here so you best not flip 'em off.

Mistakes and accidents are more likely for anyone when they first drive a Cart, think back to your first day driving your new cart, come on be honest you weren't a natural right off the bat it took a little time.

Hope this gang of unfortunate visitors come out of this with a story and a small scratch.

This kind of stuff is never gonna end. :pray: Never Ever.

:confused: I was not "implying" anything. If you are trying to read minds.... keep your day job! Please pick a fight with someone else. Thank you. :ho:

I agree! I think they "may" be a little safer..... but not bullet proof. At least I think that I think that..... maybe I should consult a medium! :)

I have both front and rear seat belts. They are attached to a metal bar behind the front seat. I am looking for retractable ones a d found several suppliers on ebay. The cost is about $50 a pair. Very easy to replace with a wrench.

Absolutely! :thumbup:

:agree:

I’m sorry to contradict you, but if two carts hit each other at 20 mph, it’s 20 mph, not 40 mph. Compare it to this: if a cart hit a stone wall at 20 mph, it’s 20 mph.

It would be "rare" to consult a "well done". Probably a missed steak.:1rotfl::1rotfl::boom:

Wrong.....:ohdear::ohdear:

If one is going directly head on at the other one and they are both going at 20 mph towards each other than the impact is the same as if one of them hit a wall at 40 mph.

If a cart hit another cart, one was going 20mph and the other wasn'tmoving atall, the impact would be 20mph. If the other cart is also moving 20mph, the total impact is 40mph.

Google is your friend. Please look it up
Steve

:ho: It would be even more "rare" for me to consult a "medium" that I thought was "half-baked".

You are correct.

I find the easiest way to visualize this is to consider the case of a brick wall and two equal golf carts collide with the wall on opposite sides at 20 MPH. Then consider what happens if the brick wall is removed. Each cart will realize the same deceleration regardless of whether the wall is there or not.