Are Golfers better drivers than non Golfers? Are Low Speed vehicles less safe than bicycles? Why do they put lights on later model golf carts anyway? Were any of these questions really considered?

There is nothing wrong with someone using a low speed vehicle in their neighborhood…Which by the way have speeds of 13-24 mph stock. Most are around 19 mph not 14. Lakeway only has 3 streets with speed limits above 35mph. Lohmans, RR620 and Serenity Hills. Are drivers in this city for some reason less capable of acting reasonably on the road than the rest of Texas?

Oh and by the way…It isn’t over. We will have a petition to recall the ordinance

The vote on the Golf cart ordinance is over, it passed unanimously. Not much of a surprise, after all, kids on golf carts are dangerous. Some golfers may be happy, they are still allowed to take their golf carts to the course and play, but since the law now says they must go straight to the course, they cannot pick up anyone on the way unless they literally live on the way. There are some golfers, however, that may not think this is so great. Those are the golfers that must drive to the course on roads that have a speed limit of over 35. That’s against the law now and they must get in the car to go to the course.

Did you really think this through Lakeway City Council? Were you in such a rush to get kids on golf carts off of the street that you decided to take privileges away from responsible adults too? Do you have many incidents of carts hitting deer at night on a golf cart? How about cars hitting deer? Is a responsible licensed adult on a golf cart less safe than a kid weaving back and forth on his bicycle as he rides down the road 3 to 5 abreast with his buddies? Wasn’t Lakeway at one time a golf and lake community? What happened? Do we have so little faith in our adult drivers that carts and cars can not co-exist legally on Lakeway’s roads? The new law states that they cannot co-exist, but why not?

Here are a few situations to think about.

The golfer plays golf till dusk and then stops to discuss the day’s shots with his buddies at the club. After an hour of chat it is well after dark. He will now have to walk home or call the Mrs. because it is against the law to drive after dark. Uh oh, honey-dos tomorrow!

Meanwhile down the road, an older lady is sitting alone at home. Her husband has gone to Houston to try to drum up some sort of business. Usually she would get on her golf cart and go to her neighbor’s house with a basket of hors d’œuvre and enjoy the company of old friends. She would not be sitting there thinking about the economy and how cruel it has been to them. Her depression would not be this bad. Her husband sold the second car when the economy turned south. They still had the fancy golf cart. It has lights and the yellow sign and is registered with the city. Obama would be proud of them, giving up the gas guzzling air polluting SUV and doing the short errands on the electric golf cart. He was even giving tax incentives for electric vehicles. Before the council meeting, she could still visit close friends and get to church on her golf cart. But she sits home. She is depressed that she can no longer go anywhere without bothering her friends. Her friends tell her to just buy a small car. How can she tell them she can’t afford to replace it?

Down Clara Van, a new family has moved into North Lakeway Village. They were disappointed that there was no gate to get to the golf course, but after much thought decided that being close to Hurst Harbor Marina where their boat is kept was much more important in that the whole family could go boating together. They bought a used golf cart with lights and a flip seat so that they could load up the cart and go to the boat without having to waste the gas and pollute the environment for such a short trip and they wouldn’t have to deal with the parking problem. They looked forward to dinner and music at the restaurant without having to even get into their gas guzzling truck. They were feeling pretty good about the arrangement. Now, just a few months after moving in, they cannot use their expensive golf cart at all. Though they live a few hundred yards from the golf course, there is no gate wide enough to get there and it is illegal for them to drive to the marina at any time of the day.

There are many other situations, I am sure; looking at Christmas lights, a neighborhood ride to enjoy the weather, going to a favorite place to watch the sunset, a drive to The Inn for dinner, taking the cart to a summer concert to hear the music, and on and on. On a golf cart these situations promote family time and allow citizens to enjoy their fine city without polluting the environment, using their gas guzzling vehicles or taking up parking spaces.

I don’t know whether or not any of the council members play golf or have golf carts. I would think that this ordinance does not affect any of them nor do I think any of them have a huge investment in a golf cart. I suspect that there was not any opposition from the citizens because they thought this was about keeping kids off of carts, not controlling adults.

Shame on you, Lakeway City Council.