EATON — Golf carts are not allowed to be driven on the streets in Eaton, and city council has decided it will be taking no action allowing them to be, citing safety concerns and the city’s high traffic counts.
During council’s Monday, Oct. 21, meeting, Mayor Matt Venable brought the topic back up for discussion, at the request of a resident who at a past meeting requested the city allow golf cart use on the streets.
“We received a report from Ryan Brunk, our law director, and I know staff has had internal discussions, along with the police department,” Venable said.
“Staff has talked about it multiple times,” Brunk reported. “We don’t think the City of Eaton, the way that most of our housing is on the east side of our city and all the parks and that sort of thing, are on the west side, the state routes, the traffic numbers, the number of big trucks. We believe it to be a safety issue for golf carts and other under-speed vehicles.”
To get anywhere in Eaton, state routes would have to be crossed, posing safety risks, according to officials. Under state law, it is illegal to operate a golf cart on a street with speed limit above 35 miles per hour.
“I don’t think there was one of us that thought it would be something that we would like to see,” Brunk said. “I did provide you with some other ordinances from other towns that limit them to under 25-mile-per-hour streets. In our case, that would keep most of the golf carts back in their cul de sacs. I’m not sure that was the request.”
According to traffic counts in the reports shared by Venable, the state routes in Eaton see up to 10,000 vehicles per day. According to Brunk, Eaton has the top six traffic counts for roads in Preble County. He noted, Lewisburg, which allows golf carts, “has 3,000 or so.”
“I think going through West Alex and Lakengren and the other ones, I think it’s a major safety issue for any public safety fire, EMS, anybody,” Councilman Brad Moore said. “It creates a lot of danger. I think the risk is way higher than the reward. I don’t think it’s worth anybody’s life.”
According to Moore, the report states there have been two fatal golf-cart crashes in the county.
Vice-Mayor David Kirsch shared some additional national statistics related to golf carts and injuries. “I guess I, if anything, I would be a no vote, primarily because I would not want to find out that somebody seriously got injured a golf cart on one of these major state highways here in the greater Eaton area,” he said. “Because life, to me, is more important than being able to use a golf cart or an ATV.”
“I agree with Vice Mayor Kirsch, if we did allow something like this in our city and an accident happened that would weigh heavy on me that someone was injured because of legislation we passed,” Mayor Venable added.
Reach Eddie Mowen Jr. at 937-683-4061 and follow on X @emowenjr.
