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Editorial
Neighborhood electric vehicles make sense for small towns
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
One measure being advanced in the Legislature this year makes a lot of sense to those of us living in small towns and -- how can we put this delicately -- with more life experience.
It should be especially interesting to Imperial residents, who recently outlawed golf carts on city streets after it became a problem.
Lawmakers advanced a bill Monday that would allow "neighborhood electric vehicles" -- glorified golf carts -- on streets with a posted speed limit of less than 35 mph.
The bill, LB289, applies to four-wheeled vehicles that weigh less than 3,000 pounds and can reach speeds between 20 and 25 mph -- you've probably seen them at use in Florida retirement communities, at airports and other facilities.
NEV drivers will have to carry liability insurance, hold a valid operator's license and register the vehicle. If it's bought after Jan. 1, 2012, it will need a title.
We've always thought such a vehicle would be useful for people who live and work in towns like McCook, where such a vehicle would be adequate for the vast majority of our trips.
The climbing price of gasoline makes such electric vehicles that much more attractive.
One drawback we can see might be the trip to Walmart, which would require a detour through the golf course to stay under the 35 mph posted speed limit. Perhaps the speed limit could be lowered on that stretch of highway -- although we shudder to think of the potential interaction between a fiberglass golf cart and a semi-tractor trailer truck.
But it makes little sense to use a full-bore highway cruiser to run to a few blocks to the store for a gallon of milk.
The new law would open up a market for an entirely new type of product in Nebraska. Hybrids are already on the market, straight electric cars are becoming available, but these small NEVs are already fully developed.
We look forward to the opportunity to save money and gasoline through the legal use of NEVs in the state.