We’re hoping that everyone who drives golf carts, rides bicycles or enjoys walking in The Villages will take a moment and realize just how important safety is when using the vast network of multi-modal paths.
As each of you know, golf carts, bikes and pedestrians share those paths, which can lead to dangerous situations resulting in serious injuries if everyone isn’t careful and alert.
One of those tragic situations occurred just last month when a bicyclist from New York was run over by a golf cart driven by a Canadian snowbird. The bicyclist, 62-year-old Ellen Difazio, of Smithtown, N.Y. was transported by ambulance to Ocala Regional Medical Center after she was hit at the entrance to the Village of Polo Ridge.
Difazio, who was wearing a helmet, was riding her bicycle on the multi-modal path that parallels Buena Vista Boulevard when 71-year-old Angela Klyne Eliosoff, who lives on the Historic Side of The Villages, made a turn too wide, collided with the curb, overcorrected and then ran over Difazio and her bicycle. Eliosoff was ticketed as a result of the crash.
Unfortunately, these kinds of crashes on the multi-modal paths happen all too often. Some other incidents include:
- A Villager was transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center this past July after his golf cart rolled over on the path along Morse Boulevard about 800 feet south of County Road 466.
- A Villager was trauma alerted to an Ocala hospital this past March after falling from a golf cart traveling on the multi-modal path along Buena Vista Boulevard south of Stillwater Trail.
- A Villager was seriously injured in February 2018 after his golf cart crashed into the wall of a tunnel on the multi-modal path at Stillwater Trail near Buena Vista Boulevard.
- A 76-year-old Village of Lynnhaven resident and his passengers were injured in January 2018 when their 2015 Yamaha golf cart was struck by another golf cart and overturned at the tunnel that connects the multi-modal path from the Village of Pinellas to the Village of Gilchrist and runs under Buena Vista Boulevard.
- A golf cart driver was injured and the passenger suffered a traumatic injury during a crash in November 2017 at the Morse Boulevard roundabout at Paige Place and El Camino Real.
- A man and woman were transported to The Villages Regional Hospital in May 2017 after the golf cart they were traveling in flipped on the multi-modal path along El Camino Real.
- In March 2017, a bicyclist was injured at a roundabout on the multi-modal path near the intersection of Buena Vista Boulevard and State Road 44A, just south of the Eisenhower Recreation Center.
- A Village of St. Charles man was arrested in February 2017 after his golf cart rear-ended another golf cart on the multi-modal path at the tunnel at South Buena Vista Boulevard and Odell Circle.
- A Villager suffered a head injury in October 2016 and was transported from the scene of a golf cart accident on the Laurel Manor Trail.A Village of Hadley resident was injured in March 2016 when she and her husband were involved in a golf cart crash on the multi-modal path near Eisenhower Recreation Center.
- A Villager was transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center in February 2016 after crashing his golf cart at a tunnel entrance in front of Freedom Pointe at The Villages.
- A bicyclist was taken to The Villages Regional Hospital in February 2015 after being hit by car while riding on a multi-modal path that parallels County Road 466 and crosses in front of the entrance to the Rolling Acres Apartments in Lady Lake.
A crew was onsite at Tunnel B-16 after the February 2018 golf cart crash that left a Villager seriously injured. 
Emergency personnel were at the scene of a bicycle crash in March 2017.
With these types of issues in mind, The Villages District Office recently released a safety reminder and asked that golf cart drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians look out for one another when sharing the multi-modal paths and other roadways in Florida’s Friendliest Hometown.
The following tips are offered for bicyclists:
- Get acquainted with traffic laws; bicyclists must follow the same rules as motorists.
- Remain alert, keep your head up and look around; watch for opening car doors and other hazards.
- Use hand signals when turning and use extra care at intersections.
- Before entering traffic, stop and look left, right, left again and over your shoulder.
Meanwhile, motorized vehicles, including golf carts, are asked to do their share:
- Make sure you are giving bikes plenty of space to avoid a collision – at least three feet.
- If the bicyclist has to move quickly to avoid something in the road, you’ll be far enough away that it won’t be an issue.
- Keep at least three feet of space between you and the bike – more if possible.
- Pass on the left. Be patient.
- You should only pass when it’s safe, even if this means driving behind a cyclist for a little while.
- Always check your blind spots for cyclists.
- As always, pay special attention at a crosswalk.
As we said earlier, we hope that every Villager who uses multi-modal paths will slow down, be more cautious and keep in mind those who are walking, riding or driving near them. If everyone does their part and makes safety a top priority, the number of crashes and tragedies like those listed above surely will decrease. That would be a great thing and if every Villager does their part, it can happen right away.
