Golf cart collision?
 

Anybody know what happened last evening on the cart path on Buena Vista near the Stillwater intersection? Must have been 10 emergency vehicles there jamming up traffic. As best I could tell, a golf cart accident of some sort had occured. Looked serious. Didn't set any report in Daily Sun this morning (typical).

It was in the Sun this morning...cart hit a curb and flipped...both occupants ejected...air lifted to hospital...section A5

Just read it in the Daily Sun. Said that both occupants were airlifted. It was a one cart accident. They hit a curb and were ejected.

???

I read the article in today's paper as well. Hope they recover soon.

Would they have been safer if they were wearing seatbelts like the POA recommends?

I wandered if the roof supports will actually collapse under the weight of the cart if it's on it's top or break off.

If this happened on the intermodal on Buena vista just south of Stillwater where the curb comes out to accommodate a tree, it is the third time that a cart has hit that curb and caused a serious injury. Perhaps it's time to consider some reengineering......if it's the same spot.

Do they redo roads when there are 3 accidents? Slow down and pay attention to driving just like in a car.

I went by right after the accident and it was right where the curb comes out.

You are correct in that the major cause of any motor vehicle accident is driver error. But there are many cases where roads have been poorly designed and have led to accident clusters. In those cases, roadways are redesigned to improve safety. The improvements can range from reflectors or signage or skid strips or noise strips, all the way up to road banking or widening or some other type of improvement.

I had trouble driving there not too long ago....
It was very dark and I didn't see the curb until I was way to close!
Hope they survive...
Karron

I know that area quite well and there are lots of reflectors on the curbs and it was only 6 pm so darkness was not a problem. More than likely, excessive speed (over 20 mph) and not paying close attention to the curves in the path.

Hope they do okay.

simple, unless you are going real slow, yes!

Accidents happen---most of the time it's the driver's carelessness---but not always.

There seems to be more and more golf cart accidents lately. I've been wondering when our insurance rates are going to go WAY up.

I would assume that there are more and more golf cart accidents is that there are more and more golf carts here in The Villages. More carts equals more accidents. :popcorn:

It's not just like in a car. A car has luminescent white lines to follow, especially helpful at night. The multimodal path doesn't have white lines like that to follow in the dark (I realize this particular accident happened reportedly in daylight). And a car's headlights are more powerful than those on a golf cart.

I've noticed many times when rounding those particular curves in the multimodal path (Stillwater and BV) that the narrow view the lights on the cart provide make it hard to see the curves and curbs in the dark.

Also, I don't think most people realize how much more dangerous it is to hit a curb with the golf cart than with a car. A car doesn't usually flip or roll over when hitting a curb going under 20 mph. And a person is unlikely to get thrown out of a car by hitting a curb at that speed. And the car is unlikely to flip over at that speed.

golf cart accidents
 

I read about another accident with a golf cart and would like to know how many people have had seat belts put in their carts? I am thinking of putting one in the passenger side where I always sit because my husband does not want one. I feel it would be safer. Thanks for any input.

It gets awful in January, February and March. Awful. There will be many accidents.

Be extra, extra careful during that time.

On the yearly survey, I always recommend putting reflectors on the multi-modal paths like what is put on the streets. The area in question (south of Stillwater on BV going around the park-like setting) is very dark and hard to navigate at night. I understand this accident didn't happen at night, nevertheless, I'd like more of us to recommend the reflectors on the paths when the next survey comes out. Night driving is a little more difficult for some of us, at our age, regardless of in a car or a cart.

The area south of BV near Stillwater is not the only multi-modal path that is dark and hard to navigate. For example, the tunnel that goes under 466A between BV and Canal concerns me. When coming from the north, there is a very sharp grade taking you down into the tunnel. There should be a warning sign signaling a sharp grade and to slow down. At the end of the tunnel, you have to pull the cart out into the multi-modal path in order to see cart traffic coming from both directions. There is a mirror there to help but it's not easy, at least for me, to use. To me, this was poor planning.

I also think the path following BV SOUTH from 466A has some other very dangerous, sharp curves. Reflectors would help us drive these paths safer.

We have seatbelts in both our carts. I have to admit I don't use them but when the grandkids are here, we don't move the cart until they are buckled in.

The problem with seat belts in a cart is that the cart has no roll bar. If the cart flips, the roof is going to crush in. Wouldn't want to be stuck in that situation. Better to be thrown from the cart than be crushed.

What time does Happy Hour end?:beer3:

From personal accounts of TV residents having seen golf cart accidents, and from the accounts published in the POA Bulletin, most cart accident victims here get thrown out of the cart and it's not a rollover. The big difference here versus typical golf cart use is that getting ejected here means NOT being thrown onto golf course turf/grass, but onto street pavement and curb concrete and then being subject to being run over by cars and trucks if thrown onto the pavement. That is far worse than being thrown onto golf course grass.

Also, here in TV, we are not driving on wet grass on hillsides and mud as golf course driving often entails, which is more conducive to rollovers. We're driving on flat city streets and paved multimodal trails. The likelihood of getting ejected into car/truck traffic is much higher here, and so is getting ejected with head split open on concrete curbing. People who know widows and widowers of that very thing are the first to say they will NOT get into a cart here without seat belts (apart from when they're playing golf).

Got us thinking we need to install seat belts at least for the grandchildren when they visit. Does anyone have a recommendation where to have them installed correctly.j

Thanks

We have seat belts and I ALWAYS use mine just like in a car. I feel safer and more secure. Would never consider letting grandkids ride without them.

The excessive speed in the tunnels; the drivers' legs sticking out of golf carts on the bridge and in the tunnels and those that forget they are retired and do NOT have to rush anywhere are the problems.......SLOW DOWN IN THE TUNNELS AND ALL PLEASE BE CAREFUL ESPECIALLY DURING THE BUSY SEASON!:posting:

I agree with what you're saying about safety in driving your golf cart. But, I have to say that I am getting really tired of people saying that because many of us are retired that we are never in a rush to get anywhere. We all have doctors appointments, meetings, tee time and all sort of other things that require us to be somewhere at a certain time. I would agree that we should leave ourselves enough time to get to where we're going without speeding, but, to imply that we are all retired and that we just never have any place to go is insulting.
And by the way, it's not just you saying it. I've read it over and over on this site.

You're right in some ways, but I think a bigger part of the speeding problem is that too many treat these carts as "big boy/girl toys" and like to go everywhere at top speed whether they have a definite destination/timeline or not. Unfortunately, some few are just smitten with the "me, me, me" attitude. My biggest gripe about the carts is that some seem to think that once you pass 65, you just need to stay home, wait your time for the grim reaper, and stay off the carts and out of the way. Many of the "old" drivers are much less a hazard than the "young" ones and often more courteous and friendly.

Golf Carts were built for golf courses----top speed about 12 mph or less. They have been modified with lights, turn signals, etc. but not for safety.

Just wonder who in TV will come out with a cart with real "safety" in mind? Unfortunately, it pretty much took GOVERNMENT to make our cars safer. Hey, we mostly "bad mouth" our Government but sometimes they do something right!

Some people have lived their whole life perpetually 15 minutes behind. Example: spending an extra 15 minutes on TOTV instead of finding their golfing shoes, balls etc. and then rushing to get to the course on time. Just because they are retired, doesn't mean they are going to change a life-long habit of being behind with their time. Like trying to change from being right-handed to being left-handed.....not going to happen. ONLY YOU CAN CONTROL HOW YOU DRIVE.......DEFENSIVELY.

I agree. I think a lot of people forget these golf carts are not toys. There are also the "all about me people".

This is not meant to inflame anyone.

There are some people who should not be driving golf carts. We have all heard the stories of legally blind people driving carts since no license is needed.

Well, not long ago, I saw an extremely obese person driving a golf cart. He was so large that he could not sit behind the steering wheel but had to sit on the passenger side and steer with his left hand only. I have no idea of what his reaction time would be to quickly step on the brake with having to do "the Rosemary Woods stretch" to reach the brake pedal.

Well, I can get my bicycle up to 25mph and routinely ride at 17-18 mph. Maybe we need some government intervention to ban bicycles. How about motorcycles? Do we need seat belts on those? I would like to see the same muffler requirements on motorcycles as cars. Some riders are so annoying revving up their engine all the time and running straight pipes or extra loud exhaust.

The point is however that we can't make everything super safe and often the cost of doing such things is huge. I think that the answer to golf cart safety is personal responsibility not some government problem. The way the government should get involved is by enforcing the existing laws.

Just like with autos....speed and not paying attention many times causes accidents, unfamiliarity with an area. The multi-modal paths are perhaps designed NOT for speed, thus the curves etc. I've had people pass me when it's obvious that it's not a safe option to do this.

We don't know for sure what happened in this case. It's horrible that there was serious injuries that took place. We need to pray for those individuals and not make assumptions on what took place.

Hard to guess what caused the accident? maybe had heart attack? I don't consider not paying attention an accident! it's drivers attention Fault (could be site seeing, texting, answering phone, lighting cig., reaching for map or drink, to putting on makeup if wasn't doing all these things most likely wouldn't of hit something)

I think maybe the curb is the problem in areas where cart can reach full speed?. If there has to be curbs on the trail then they shouldn't be so high or angled so it flips carts or high enough to make the cart bounce off them. The next question I have is why curbs anyway? I also agree 20MPH in most areas too fast for carts approaching curves, tunnels and intersections (most drivers know to slow down, but few think they are Speed racers trying to make their tee times). But, speed limit could be 15 MPH and some people will still run into things.

When Frank at Sta-Rite built our Club Car reman earlier this year, we had belts put on all 4 seats - we always use them, and like them very much. And they're especially needed when the grandkids visit: the 4 year old can sit in her own booster seat in safety.

My husband installed lap belts for both of us- easy to do and we both wear them all the time. Getting thrown from a golf cart is not on my bucket list..

I'm not advocating Government do anything with our golf carts. It would be smart for those riding bikes or motorcycles to wear helmets and those of us who drive golf carts to wear seatbelts.

It might be smart and profitable for a golf cart dealer to offer more safety equipment. The golf carts we drive in TV could use some practical safety equipment. Like I mentioned previously, they were designed for golf course use and not designed for what we use them. :(

We don't need Govn. intervention, they would only screw it up !!!