[This is an EXCERPT: read the whole article here.

Smaller, more efficient vehicles like golf carts and scooters will be part of adaptation to an energy-constrained future, especially for emergency-response but municipalities will need to ensure that the transition is handled safely. -Ed.]

By Tim Evans

"[Summitville, Indiana] is one of a growing number across the USA that have begun allowing golf carts on its streets in the past year."

"'I'm saving money and wear and tear on my car,' said Fisher, 82, whose cart is tricked out with seat belts, a boombox, flashing hazard light and wheel-rim spinners. A USA TODAY review found that in the past year, as gas prices surged past $4 a gallon, dozens of communities, — including Danforth, Ill.; Pulaski, Va.; Conover, N.C.; Osseo, Minn.; and Loveland, Colo. — have passed or debated ordinances to allow golf carts on local streets."

"Jim Philipps, spokesman for the National Association of Counties, said some county and municipal agencies, including law enforcement, parks and utility departments, are also looking to the vehicles as a cost-effective alternative."

"The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does not recognize golf carts as on-road vehicles, so they don't have to meet the same federal safety standards as automobiles, said McGwin, who stressed the need for safety to be addressed in local ordinances."

Photo credit: James Jones