The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office has begun “an education effort” to let golf cart drivers on the makeshift grass path along U.S. Highway 27/441 know that driving there is illegal.
“The sheriff’s office wants to make golf cart drivers aware that it is unlawful to drive a golf cart on the pavement or grass along the highway,” said Nehemiah Wolfe of the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
The activity has been taking place on the grassy area across from The Villages Hospital on U.S. Highway 27/441.
At this point, deputies won’t be issuing tickets to golf cart operators on this make-shift path, but they will make them aware it is illegal to drive there, Wolfe said.
“The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office has observed an increase in golf carts traveling on the grassy shoulder (East side on US 441/27 between Bella Cruz Drive and Boone Drive. Golf carts are not allowed to travel on the grassy shoulder of US 441/27. This is a violation of Florida State Staute 316.212 which carries a fine of $166.00,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement issued Tuesday afternooon.
The “renegade route” sprung up this weekend and has given golf cart operators on the Historic Side of The Villages a means to travel to Wal-Mart and Lowe’s in Summerfield.
For years they had enjoyed golf cart access, but a wall, nicknamed the “Berlin Wall’ went up over the weekend blocking access.