Can I drive a golf cart on Bellaire streets?
Short answer: Mostly no. Bellaire's city code has no local golf-cart section. Instead, the city adopts the Texas Transportation Code, and that law lets a golf cart on a street only in narrow cases. We did not find any city rule that opens Bellaire streets to everyday golf-cart driving.
What we checked
We searched the whole city code for "golf," "golf cart," "low-speed," "neighborhood electric" and "utility vehicle." None of those words appear anywhere in the code. The closest wording is "motor carts or go-carts" in Sec. 30-29 (below). We did not find a city ordinance that allows golf carts on city streets.
Texas law applies
Chapter 30 says the city "adopts as a part of this Code all of the provisions of the Transportation Code applicable to municipalities, including but not limited to V.T.C.A., Transportation Code §§ 541.001—552.008." Texas golf-cart rules sit inside that range. Rule: City Code Sec. 30-1.
What Texas law allows by default
The state law defines a golf cart as "a motor vehicle designed by the manufacturer primarily for use on a golf course." It lets you drive one in only a few places. On a regular street, it must be: - on a street with a posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less, - "during the daytime," - "not more than five miles from the location where the golf cart is usually parked," and - "for transportation to or from a golf course."
The law also says a person may drive a golf cart on a highway this way "only if the vehicle displays a license plate issued under this section." Two other places the law allows golf carts are a "master planned community" that is a residential subdivision, and a beach open to cars. The city code does not say that any part of Bellaire is a master planned community.
A golf cart may also cross a street at an intersection, even a street with a speed limit above 35 miles per hour.
Rule: Texas Transportation Code Secs. 551.401 to 551.405, adopted by City Code Sec. 30-1.
Can the city allow more?
Yes. State law says the "governing body of a municipality may allow an operator to operate a golf cart" on all or part of a highway with a posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour or less. State law also lets a city, a county or the Texas Department of Transportation prohibit golf carts on a road if it finds a prohibition necessary for safety (Sec. 551.4031). We did not find that Bellaire has done this in its code. If you want to know whether the City Council has allowed it some other way, ask the city.
Sidewalks and signed areas
It is unlawful "to operate a motorized vehicle of any kind on a public sidewalk." The only exception is for motorized wheelchairs, scooters or other devices used by a person with a disability. Rule: City Code Sec. 27-5(a).
Where the police chief has "motor vehicles excluded" signs installed, the code makes it unlawful to operate any motor vehicle on that property. It defines "motor vehicle" to include "motor carts or go-carts and any other type of vehicle having a motor as its means of propulsion," so a motorized golf cart appears to be covered. Rule: City Code Sec. 30-29.
What happens if you don't
The city code has no golf-cart penalty of its own. The sidewalk rule (Sec. 27-5) and the signed-area rule (Sec. 30-29) use the general penalty: a fine of up to $500, and each day counts as a new offense (Sec. 1-10). The legal basis is Texas Local Government Code Sec. 54.001.
Who to call
Police Department.
Sources
- City of Bellaire Code of Ordinances, Sec. 30-1 (adoption of Transportation Code), Sec. 30-29 (exclusion of motor vehicles), Sec. 27-5 (use of public sidewalks), Sec. 1-10 (general penalty). library.municode.com/tx/bellaire
- Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 551, Subchapter F (Golf Carts), Secs. 551.401 to 551.405. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/TN/htm/TN.551.htm
- Texas Local Government Code, Sec. 54.001 (maximum fines for city ordinances). statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/LG/htm/LG.54.htm
En español
En su mayoría, no. El código de Bellaire no tiene una sección local sobre carritos de golf. La ciudad adopta el Código de Transporte de Texas, y esa ley permite el carrito de golf en las calles solo en casos limitados. En una calle normal, el carrito debe usarse en una vía con límite de velocidad de 35 millas por hora o menos, durante el día, a no más de cinco millas del lugar donde normalmente se estaciona, y para ir o volver de un campo de golf. También debe tener una placa emitida por el estado. La ley también permite carritos en una comunidad residencial planificada y en playas abiertas a vehículos. Un carrito puede cruzar una calle en una intersección. La ley estatal dice que el gobierno de la ciudad puede permitir más uso en calles de 35 mph o menos, pero no encontramos que Bellaire lo haya hecho en su código. Está prohibido manejar cualquier vehículo motorizado en una acera pública, salvo aparatos motorizados de personas con discapacidad. Donde el jefe de policía haya instalado letreros de "vehículos de motor excluidos", se prohíbe operar cualquier vehículo de motor, y un carrito de golf motorizado parece estar incluido. La ley estatal también permite que la ciudad prohíba los carritos de golf en una vía por motivos de seguridad. El código no tiene una multa propia para carritos de golf; se aplica la multa general de hasta $500, y cada día cuenta como una nueva infracción (Sec. 1-10; base legal: Sec. 54.001 del Código de Gobierno Local de Texas). Para dudas, comuníquese con el Departamento de Policía.