Accidents Focus Attention on Maine Golf Cart Rules

Two serious accidents involving golf carts – neither occurring on a golf course – are leading to questions about safety and inspection rules for the vehicles in Maine.

The Portland Press Herald reports that while golf carts must be registered if they’re used on public roads, there are no unified regulations in the state.

A Sanford man died of injuries he suffered last Saturday when he fell off a golf cart on private property in Casco. The driver, Gary Belinsky of Westford, Mass., faces a drunken driving charge.

Police believe speed was a factor in a golf cart crash on Tuesday that injured five people, two seriously, on Frye Island.

Maine Department of Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland said he was not aware of any fatal golf cart accidents on public roads in recent years.