Police Jurisdiction?
 

I know that they can stop you for speeding in a golf cart on a county road, but do they have jurisdiction on the cart paths alongisde the main roads?

Today there were 3 police cars parked in the grass on Buena Vista, heading north of Bailey Trail, and one of the officers had a radar gun that he was uing on golf carts as they came north on the path alongside the golf course, towards Stillwell.

Luckily I was doing only 19mph due to the carts in front of me....

My understanding is that the police have NO jurisdiction on the privately owned multi-modal trails.

Did they have anyone pulled over?

It's likely not for speeding, but for an unregistered vehicle. If you're doing more than 20 in a cart, you can be cited for an unregistered vehicle, not for speeding.

I'm not sure about the jurisdiction question, but perhaps they can check for this one violation anywhere. For example, the parking lots at malls, etc., are private, but if the authorities see an expired tag, perhaps they can issue a citation. :shrug:

No authority on the trails.

Per Lt. Wolf ... they can wait for the "speeding" golf cart to enter onto a county road which it will have to do eventually ... and if the golf cart was clocked doing more than 20 mph, it is not a golf cart since it is capable of going faster than 20 mph and is, therefore, an unlicensed motor vehicle on a county road ... however they do not patrol the multi-modal paths because they are private property and they do not have jurisdiction ... but they have their ways ...

[QUOTE=NicknBabs;417695Luckily I was doing only 19mph due to the carts in front of me....[/QUOTE]

Or you would have been doing 20? 30?

:1rotfl:

Just wait until Sumter County lowers speed limit on selected Village streets to 20 MPH and cars start getting passed by golf carts. It's gonna happen.:gc:

I believe any cart is capable and will do more than 20 mph if it is going down hill... does that make it "not a golf cart" when it is not going faster than 20 mph?

Most gas and electric golf carts have governors that prevent the cart from exceeding 20mph even on a downhill run. I drive a registered LSV and the governor kicks in at around 26mph.

My cart didn't come with a speedometer, so how would I know if I'm going more than 20mph??? I haven't tweaked it in any way, so I would have a hard time getting a ticket for unregistered vehicle.

The guy with the radar/laser gun will let you know........... :police:

;)

Bill :wave:

Great response Bill.

It’s not difficult to figure out if your cart is juiced up. When you drive on the cart paths/lanes do you regularly find yourself overtaking the majority of other carts. If so, ask a friend with a GPS to ride with you or ask your repair shop to test it the next time you’re in for a tune-up.

If your cart was pre-owned, the previous owner could have juiced it up and I can assure you that with more than 40,000 carts in TV, the enforcement officers are well versed in spotting aftermarket speed enhancers in a cart.

I agree they have governors but governors don't apply brakes when going downhill. I have a gas and an electric with governors but they do not slow the cart when going downhill. Governors will only limit engine RPM by adjusting throttle position and limiting fuel supply.

I can tell you that my electric cart will definitely slowdown, when going downhill, when the governed speed is reached. It stops juice going to the motor, which has the same effect as putting on the brakes. I have a ParCar, so maybe they're different