Golf cart lane drives wedge in Surprise neighborhood - azcentral.com

"Duffy" Ploghoft checks to see that paint is flowing adequately from the striping machine in the northbound lane of North Bullard Avenue between West Cactus Road and West Waddell Road to create a golf cart and bike lanes in Surprise, AZ, the evening of Wednesday, July 29, 2015.(Photo: Isaac Hale/The Republic)

Story Highlights

• Surprise has installed the state’s first dedicated golf cart lane
• The lane has irritated some residents who don’t see a need for the change
• The city is holding a public meeting later this month to explain the changes

It’s the first of its kind in Arizona, and a designated golf-cart lane on a public street in the middle of Surprise has left some perplexed and others upset.

Bullard Avenue was restriped from Greenway to Peoria avenues late last month to create more space between pedestrians and cars.

Part of that strategy was reducing the roadway from two lanes to one, and city officials decided to use the newly empty space between a car lane and bike lane as a “neighborhood electronic vehicle” lane.

“We knew this was a weird project â€" but a ‘road diet’ was necessary to calm traffic,” said Mike Gent, public works director. “Just changing the speed limit sign wouldn’t have done much. And adding a golf cart lane was bound to raise eyebrows.”

RELATED: Gov. Brewer signs golf-cart bill into law

It certainly has.

“It doesn’t make any sense â€" no one has golf carts here. What’s next â€" a baby carriage lane on Loop 303?” said Wilfred Lessard, who lives in a neighborhood off Bullard Avenue.

Signage is posted in the southbound lane of North Bullard Avenue between West Cactus Road and West Peoria Avenue to create a golf cart and bike lanes in Surprise, AZ, the evening of Wednesday, July 29, 2015. (Photo: Isaac Hale/The Republic)

For Gent, the so-called road diet was not focused on creating a lane for golf carts, but said that was a “nice bonus” to offer connectivity.

The long-term effects of the lane reduction remain to be seen.

Public meeting on new lane

When: Monday, Aug. 17 at 6 p.m.

Where: Marley Park Elementary School, 15042 W. Sweetwater Ave.

“In hindsight, it would have been good to get more public input,” he said. “But we needed to make it so that pedestrians wouldn’t have to compete with four lanes of traffic.”

One immediate effect, though, has been the public’s response. Many have made contact with the city to express their dissatisfaction.

RELATED: Sun City residents celebrate new golf-cart law

Lessard wrote a letter to Mayor Sharon Wolcott expressing his concern that frustrated motorists would use the designated golf cart lane to pass cars on the right, potentially colliding with bicyclists. He described the changes as irresponsible and “totally stupid,” as he has never seen someone travel Bullard Avenue with a golf cart.

Gent said it was previously against the law for golf carts to travel on Bullard due to the former speed limit of 45 miles per hour. The limit was reduced to 35 miles per hour but neighbors think the changes may reduce safety. The cost of the changes was around $30,000.

“Anyone riding their bike or using that golf cart lane is putting their life into their hands,” Lessard said. “I could see Sun City doing something like this, but not Surprise.”

But even Sun City, known for its golf cart adoration, doesn’t have an equivalent. Gent said the city had to go to California to find road signs that show both golf cart and bike lanes on the street.

One potential drawback is increased traffic queues for about 20 minutes starting at 7:30 a.m. as parents drop off their children at neighboring schools.

A crew re-stripes the northbound lane of North Bullard Avenue between West Cactus Road and West Peoria Avenue to create golf cart and bike lanes in Surprise on July 29, 2015. (Photo: Isaac Hale/The Republic)

That increased traffic is chaos, said Shanna Hall, who lives in nearby Royal Ranch.

“It’s ridiculous. That money could have been put back into our schools,” Hall said. “I now have to do everything I can to avoid Bullard ... the last thing we need is crazy people driving golf carts.”

All golf carts driven on public roads must be registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Nearly 38,000 golf carts are registered in Arizona, with more than 30,000 of those in Maricopa County â€" many in the West Valley.

Last year, then-Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law a bill allowing golf cart drivers living in age-restricted communities and densely populated counties to drive their vehicles as close to the right-hand edge of a roadway as practical.

That law addressed the question of whether golf carts could drive on the shoulder of roads, and was targeted to Sun City and other such communities.

A few streets over from Hall and Lessard, Irish Doherty keeps a golf cart promoting his pest control business in his driveway. He purchased it three months ago and formerly traveled on dirt trails to visit clients and friends.

The addition of the golf cart lane, he said, could change how he travels to those locations â€" even if it has left his house divided.

“My wife thinks the change is dumb, but I can see how it could be useful,” he said. “Even though I’m the only golf cart driver now, I think we can foresee other people like grandparents using it to visit their kids.”

That fits with the city’s 2035 general plan to provide more modes of alternative travel opportunities, which was approved by voters in November 2013.

Gent said this measure could attract people whose primary means of transportation are golf carts, though it remains uncertain if golf cart traffic will increase on Bullard Avenue.

An Aug. 17 meeting at Marley Park Elementary School will address the restriping and explain the motivations behind it. Representatives from the city will also be available to answer questions.

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