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Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Ind. Law - An ATV is not a golf cart and a county road is not necessarily a gravel road

On July 27th, the ILB cited a story in the Evansville Courier & Press that began:

Vanderburgh County Commissioners have made it a little bit easier place to drive an off-road vehicle here.

Heeding the wishes of rural residents who requested the change, the County Commissioners earlier this month passed an ordinance allowing off-road vehicles — predominantly four-wheelers and dirt bikes — on county-maintained gravel roads.

Operators may not drive faster than 20 mph. They still must have valid driver's licenses and register their vehicles with the state Department of Natural Resources at a cost of $30 for three years, among other conditions.

"This is not an opportunity to fishtail and do doughnuts in the gravel; you have to obey the traffic laws," said Mike Kellner, a Department of Natural Resources conservation officer who patrols Vanderburgh and Warrick counties.

Off-road vehicles still may not be driven on blacktop roads in Vanderburgh County, though drivers may take them onto the sides of roads.

The state statute authorizing off-road vehicles allows counties to pass ordinances permitting such vehicles to use county roads outside city limits. Otherwise, the law does not allow driving off-road vehicles on any public roadway, gravel or blacktop.

Yesterday the Perry County News had this story, reported by Kevin Koelling. Some quotes:
TELL CITY - People have asked Perry County Commissioner Jody Fortwendel about allowing off-road vehicles to use county roads, and now he's asking county residents what they think.

Vanderburgh County commissioners adopted an ordinance about a month ago, Fortwendel said during a regular meeting of the Perry County commissioners Wednesday.

"I have been approached by several people about making it legal for (all-terrain vehicles) to have access to county roads," he said. "I'm asking for input from the public."

Under current state law, off-road vehicles must be registered in most cases, and can be driven on rights-of-way along public highways "if there is sufficient width to operate at a reasonable distance off and away from the traveled part and in a manner so as not to endanger life or property."

Indiana Code 14-16-1-20 also allows an off-road vehicle to be operated "on a highway in a county road system outside the corporate limits of a city or town if the highway is designated for this purpose by the county highway department."

Drivers of off-road vehicles must be licensed before using them on public highway, according to the law. * * *

County attorney Chris Goffinet told Fortwendel the county has an ordinance concerning off-road vehicles, and their use on public roads is permitted in some circumstances.

A Perry County ordinance adopted in 1989 permits "three and four wheelers" to be operated on county roads and highways "only for non-recreational purposes." Operators must have valid driver's licenses and the same liability insurance as required for on-road vehicles.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 12, 2008 08:48 AM
Posted to Indiana Law