Ostend draws up safety rules for electric go-karts
The city of Ostend has drawn up a charter with safety rules around the use of electric go-karts, Het Laatste Nieuws reports. The measure was taken because of complaints about vehicles travelling too fast, posing a danger to pedestrians, and accidents involving young children riding them. Last year, a four-year-old German boy died after such an accident.
The charter states that children must be at least five years old to ride electric go-karts and seven years old for an electric motorbike. Each child must also pass a short test to prove their driving skills, and the speed will be limited to 10km/hr. The rental companies that signed the charter commit to abide by these rules.
"We cannot issue fines if rental companies do not comply with the rules, but we have chosen to engage in dialogue rather than impose rules and issue fines,” Ostend mayor Bart Tommelein told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Some people want to ban everything, but go-karts are a part of the coast. It’s up to everyone to use their common sense.”
Many rental companies are already more cautious since last year's accident. "Then we still saw go-karts that could travel at 20 to 25km/hr, but now the speed is usually limited to 10km/hr,” said Tommelein. “That speed makes a big difference if a pedestrian were to be hit.”
The local police issued 21 official reports for collisions involving go-karts in the past five years. "Among these, there were six with only material damage,” said Ostend’s chief of police Philip Caestecker. “So in itself, these figures are not so bad, we’re talking about four cases a year. Of course, people will not file a complaint if it only leaves them with a bruise, so the actual number of accidents will probably be slightly higher."
#FlandersNewsService | Children riding go-karts on the promenade at the coast © PHOTO ARTERRA
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