Despite some efforts to craft an ordinance that would allow handicapped residents to operate golf carts on town streets, Wake Forest commissioners Tuesday night agreed with two police officers and will let the effort to legalize golf cart use die.
Lieutenant Trent Coleman and Captain Darren Abbacchi had given the town board their opinions about golf carts on town streets – totally not roadworthy, not crashworthy and also unsafe because there are no doors or seat belts – back on June 7, but they were asked to return with information about accidents and experiences in other towns. Tuesday they repeated their warning about the unsafe nature of the carts but also had an example. On June 11, Coleman related, a 16-year-old without a driver’s license had four passengers in his cart. They had been at a subdivision pool and then started driving around, listening to music with no seat belts. When the cart started down a hill and gaining speed the driver tried to apply the brakes which locked, the cart went end over end, sending the driver and passengers tumbling out. There were no injuries aside from road rash.
Coleman also explained the difficulty in finding golf cart accident statistics because they are listed as “other” accidents along with those involving bicycles and lawn mowers. To find golf cart accidents, an officer would have to pull all “other” accidents and look through the reports one by one.
Commissioner Greg Harrington said he would like an ordinance which restrict driving a cart to only people who have a doctor-certified disability and add other restrictions such as seat belts, lights, no one younger than 18 and no use on main roads. “It was not my intention at all to allow just anyone to drive a golf cart.”
But the officers who have seen all the tricks and know the law said others would skirt the law – easy to get a doctor to prescribe a disability – and, as Coleman said, “If I stop a golf cart, I can’t say what’s your disability?”
Commissioner Brian Pate said he has been getting phone calls from the same four or five people “who told me over and over and over but at the same time I’ve had hundreds of emails from that same neighborhood, saying they are not in favor. I think it’s time we were putting this to bed.”
If an unlicensed young driver hits and damages a $70,000 Corvette, Coleman asked, what then? Do they have insurance?
“I started out being pretty much in favor of this,” Mayor Vivian Jones said, but the officers’ information “has opened my eyes.”
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First National Study to Examine Golf Cart-Related Injuries
New study warns drivers and passengers about risks associated with golf carts
COLUMBUS, OH – 6/10/2008
The popularity of golf carts has skyrocketed in recent years, and unfortunately so has the number of golf cart-related injuries. In fact, a new study conducted by researchers in the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital found that the number of golf cart-related injuries rose 132 percent during the 17-year study period.
According to the study, published in the July issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (available online), there were an estimated 148,000 golf cart-related injuries between 1990 and 2006, ranging from an estimated 5,770 cases in 1990 to approximately 13,411 cases in 2006.
As golf carts have become faster and more powerful, they are no longer limited to use on the golf course. In addition to their traditional role, golf carts are now routinely being used at sporting events, hospitals, airports, national parks, college campuses, business parks and military bases. While the study found that the majority of golf cart-related injuries (more than 70 percent) took place at sports or recreational facilities, individuals injured in carts on the street had an increased risk of concussions and were more likely to require hospitalization than individuals injured in other locations.
While the most common cause of injury for all ages was falling or jumping from the cart, study co-author Gary Smith, MD, DrPH, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and an associate professor of pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine explained, “Children are even more likely than adults to fall from the golf cart, and these falls are associated with higher rates of head and neck injuries and hospitalizations. Greater efforts are needed to prevent these injuries.”
More than 30 percent of golf cart-related injuries involved children under the age of 16.
“Because golf carts are not designed for children and the majority offer no child safety features, we recommend that children under the age of 6 years not be transported in golf carts and that drivers be at least 16 years old to operate the vehicle,” said study co-author Tracy Mehan, MA, CPST, research associate in the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s.
The study recommends that more effective safety features, such as improved passenger restraints and four-wheel brakes, in combination with training programs and safety policies would reduce the overall number of golf cart-related injuries.
“Following a few safety precautions, such as driving at a reasonable speed, wearing seat belts when they are available, braking slowly and considering the terrain and weather conditions can reduce the potential for injuries,” said Mehan.
Facilities where golf carts are used can also help prevent golf cart-related injuries by establishing safety policies, requiring driver’s licenses and operator training and considering safety when designing the pathways golf carts will be using.
Data for the study were collected from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), which is operated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The NEISS dataset provides information on consumer product-related and sports and recreation-related injuries treated in hospital emergency departments in the U.S.
The Center for Injury Research and Policy (CIRP) of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital works at the local to international levels to reduce death and disability due to injuries through research, education, advocacy and advances in clinical care. CIRP aims to improve the scientific understanding of the epidemiology, prevention, acute treatment, rehabilitation and biomechanics of injuries. CIRP educates health and other professionals, policy makers and the public regarding the importance of injuries, injury research and injury prevention. CIRP provides leadership in the development, implementation and scientific evaluation of public policy regarding control of injuries. Learn more about CIRP at http://www.injurycenter.org.
The Thales Academy on Heritage trade Dr. use golf carts on a regular basis. On roads that were built with public money and now posted private property no trespassing Thales Academy
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