RESERVE — The last thing Landon Lyons has to do to make sure his golf cart is street legal is get the correct insurance.

“I always had the lights and blinkers and everything on it,” Lyons said. “We just don’t have the insurance on it like what is required.”

Lyons, of Reserve, said he has owned his golf cart for four years.

“I got the golf cart to socialize with everyone in the neighborhood,” Lyons said. “It’s a good way to meet and hang out with neighbors.”

According to a new ordinance passed by the St. John the Baptist Parish Council, golf cart owners need to make sure their carts are up to par before taking to approved streets in St. John.

Golf carts must be street legal, meaning they are equipped with efficient brakes, a reliable steering apparatus, safe tires, a rearview mirror and red reflectorized warning devices in the front and rear of the vehicle.

They can’t be driven on federal or state roads. Owners must also have proper insurance, register their cart with the state and the parish and the person behind the wheel must be a licensed driver.

District 2 Councilwoman Julia Remondet said she believes St. John is the first parish to adopt such an ordinance.

“We just hope that everything goes smoothly,” she said. “That’s our main concern that everything goes well and it makes it worth the effort. I think the ordinance is a positive thing. People need to read the ordinance carefully to make sure they have everything they need to.”

Remondet said there are many golf cart lovers in her district.

“I introduced the ordinance because it impacts my district more than any other district,” she said.

“The residents wanted to use their carts. I worked directly with the Sheriff and others on the ordinance. I just took a leading role because it mostly affects the people in my district. They have become very, very attached to getting around in a golf cart.”

One major complaint residents were making was the fact young children, who do not know the rules of the road, where driving golf carts.

“(Golf carts) are most prevalent in the Reserve area,” Remondet said. “I think some people didn’t think it was necessary to do anything, but when you see children, very young children driving a cart, you know it’s time to put some rules in place. That’s been our biggest complaint, having underage children driving the carts.”

Authorities have gotten calls about young children driving golf carts in the streets, which is unsafe, Sheriff Mike Tregre said, adding the new ordinance ends that.

“We would see children driving golf carts on the streets not knowing the rules of the street,” he said. “They would also drive around at night time with no type of lights or anything. They could have gotten someone killed. Now you have to be a licensed driver. I think that will take care of that issue.”

Tregre said as the summer continues officers will start doing checks making sure everybody has their golf carts up to standard and drivers are licensed.

As long as officials don’t ban golf carts completely, Lyons said he is OK with the ordinance, adding he doesn’t mind that carts can only be driven on parish roads.

“I think that riding them around neighborhoods is a good idea,” he said. “Riding block-to-block, just seeing everybody, going to the ballpark or getting a snowball is fine. I don’t see a problem with that.”

Golf carts are still illegal on all state and federal highways.

“We had the EOC director and the St. John Sheriff’s Office working with us on the streets,” Remondet said. “It’s become a pretty big way of travel in the last few years in several states. I see a lot of states that are authorizing the use of golf carts, but you have to have them with things like lights, turn signals, insurance and you have to be a licensed driver.”

Remondet said many parish leaders felt there had become a need to regulate golf cart use.

“I think it was a good move for us to put this in effect,” she said. “We have to post signs and whatnot and possibly put stripes on the roads.”

Remondet doesn’t have a golf cart at this time, but she said she plans to get one in the future.