Maitland has banned golf carts from all city streets, sidewalks, and trails, giving owners until approximately August 11 before police start writing tickets.
The prohibition applies to the entire vehicle class, and there’s no equipment upgrade out there that can make a golf cart legal on Maitland public roads. Owners who want to keep riding have one option: convert or replace their cart with a state-registered low-speed vehicle. What’s the difference? Check out this handy graph we made.
Maitland police began handing out enforcement notices on May 13 at Dommerich Elementary and Maitland Middle School, where golf carts tend to gather at the close of the school year. Officers across the city are authorized to stop any golf cart on a public road and hand over the flyer, but will not issue a ticket during the 90-day warning period.
City Manager Mark Reggentin announced the initiative at the May 12 city council meeting. “We always give some time before active enforcement starts,” he said. “This gives them over the summer to make the upgrades to their golf carts to make them street legal.” However, making a golf cart “street legal” in Maitland requires converting to a state-registered low-speed vehicle, not simply adding equipment to the cart itself.
To continue riding on Maitland roads legally, owners must meet Florida’s standard for a low-speed vehicle: a four-wheeled vehicle capable of speeds above 20 miles per hour and no more than 25 miles per hour. The vehicle must be state-registered, titled, and carry personal injury protection and property damage liability insurance.
Drivers, including teen riders, must have a valid driver’s license in their possession.
Once the grace period ends on August 11, operating a golf cart on a Maitland public road is a moving traffic infraction under Florida law. Fines can reach approximately $158, including court costs, according to a Florida Senate bill analysis of the governing statute.
Florida law allows municipalities to formally designate specific roads for golf cart use. Maitland has not done so, meaning the prohibition reflects the state’s default rules. The city is enforcing existing law, not imposing a new restriction.
Several Florida communities, including The Villages and parts of Clearwater Beach, have designated roads for golf cart use. However, many cities across the state enforce the default prohibition on golf carts without special designations.
