Urbanna’s golf cart effort continues
by Tom Chillemi
Urbanna may become a golf cart town.
Urbanna Town Councilman Joe Heyman and his committee have drafted a set of regulations for golf carts that would be driven on town streets. These golf carts would not be required to be registered with the state or have license plates.
The draft regulations were presented to council at its February 28 meeting.
The draft is borrowed from Colonial Beach and would require yearly safety inspections and insurance. Golf cart owners who comply with the inspection and insurance requirement would get a license sticker from the town showing their cart is registered with the town. There is no fee for the registration sticker. Only golf carts that are registered with the town may be operated on Urbanna streets.
Only licensed drivers would be permitted to operate golf carts on Urbanna’s streets.
Required safety equipment includes a speed governor if the cart is gasoline powered and safety lap belts.
Carts must have an orange slow-moving vehicle sign, and may not be operated during incle-ment weather nor when visibility is impaired.
The town will be working on a resolution, with all requirements, for consideration by the Middlesex Board of Supervisors, which could approve the use of golf carts on Urbanna streets. The county’s approval would expire after 2 years, said Heyman.
The town council may consider the resolution at its March 21 meeting, Heyman said.
The town currently is unable to approve golf carts because it does not have its own police force. If the General Assembly grants a waiver, the town could enact its own golf cart regulations without the consent of the county.
The waiver requires a resolution introduced by a member of the legislature. The town attempted to have a golf cart resolution submitted in the recent General Assembly session, but was unsuccessful.
