New Jersey Low-Speed Vehicles: Titled, Plated, and Capped at 25 MPH Roads

The scheme comes from L.2005, c.273 and lives at R.S. 39:4-31.1 through 39:4-31.5. R.S. 39:1-1 defines a low-speed vehicle as a four-wheeled low-speed vehicle as defined in 49 C.F.R. 571.3(b), whose attainable speed is more than 20 miles per hour but not more than 25 miles per hour on a paved level surface, which is not powered by gasoline or diesel fuel, and which complies with the federal safety standards at 49 C.F.R. 571.500. Two clauses in that sentence do the real work. The floor of more than 20 mph rules out the slower carts entirely, and the fuel exclusion rules out gas and diesel machines, which is the point most people arrive at this page to check. New Jersey did not create a golf cart class and then regulate it; it adopted the federal electric LSV and registered that.

Golf carts are treated as a separate thing everywhere else in Title 39 too. R.S. 39:3C-1, the definition section of the off-road vehicle chapter, defines an all-terrain vehicle as a motor vehicle designed and manufactured for off-road use only with between three and six non-highway tires, and expressly says it "shall not include golf carts." So a cart is not registrable as an ATV either. Absent an electric machine that meets 49 C.F.R. 571.500, there is no New Jersey registration class that fits a golf cart, and without registration it cannot lawfully be driven on a public road.

Where an LSV may go is set by posted speed, not by road class. R.S. 39:4-31.1(a) allows operation on any state highway posted at 25 mph or less, and lets the Commissioner of Transportation by order, under P.L.1998, c.28 (C.39:4-8.2 et seq.), extend that to roads posted above 25 but not above 35 mph, or prohibit LSVs on any state street the commissioner determines would be hazardous. Subsection (b) gives a municipality the same two powers by ordinance for its own streets, and a county the same powers by ordinance or resolution. The Motor Vehicle Commission states the practical consequence plainly on its own low-speed vehicle page: municipalities can impose an LSV ban on all roadways within their jurisdiction. That is the local authorisation mechanism, and it runs to the LSV, not to a cart.

Crossings are handled separately and more permissively. Under subsections (c) and (d), an LSV may enter an intersection and cross a road posted at 35 mph or less, except that on a road of more than two lanes or a divided road the crossing must be at a signalized intersection or at a non-signalized intersection the commissioner, municipality or county has determined is appropriate. Above 35 mph, only signalized or specifically approved intersections will do.

The driver and the paperwork are treated like any other vehicle. R.S. 39:4-31.3 requires a valid driver's license under R.S. 39:3-10, registration and insurance under R.S. 39:3-4, a plate issued by the Motor Vehicle Commission or by another state, and possession of the license, registration certificate and insurance identification card at all times while in charge of the vehicle. It also makes the operator subject to chapter 4 of Title 39 and to chapters 11 and 12 of Title 2C, which is how vehicular homicide and assault by auto reach an LSV driver. Equipment under R.S. 39:4-31.2 is 49 C.F.R. 571.500 plus adequate brakes, an odometer, a speedometer, a die-stamped manufacturer's vehicle identification number, and a manufacturer's safety decal on the rear reading "25 MPH Vehicle," with the fine for missing equipment set by reference to R.S. 39:3-79 at not more than $25. R.S. 39:4-31.5 exempts the LSV from motor vehicle inspection while leaving the registered owner responsible for maintaining it in proper condition.

The purchase itself carries a New Jersey wrinkle. R.S. 39:4-31.4 requires a manufacturer's certificate of origin identifying the vehicle as a low-speed vehicle, and requires every purchaser of a new LSV to execute a waiver certifying that the purchase was made with full knowledge of the potentially hazardous characteristics of such vehicles as detailed by the manufacturer or dealer. The statute then provides that signing the waiver "shall serve to eliminate any liability of the manufacturer and his agent or dealer of low-speed vehicles."

The Motor Vehicle Commission publishes the fees. Titling costs $60, or $85 with a lien. Initial registration as a non-government entity is $46.50 for the year, dropping to $34 once the vehicle is two model years or older, and LSVs are outside the Four-Year Accelerated Registration Program. Non-government LSVs get a single standardized LSV plate for the rear, inscribed "Low Speed Vehicle" along the bottom; a personalized plate is available for a one-time $50 on top of the registration fee, and dedicated plates and wheelchair-symbol plates are not available for LSVs. A plate may be transferred to another LSV but not to a different type of vehicle. Coverage is written through the New Jersey Personal Automobile Insurance Plan or a voluntary insurer, and the sales tax exemption applies only where the vehicle is certified by the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection.

S. 1(e), which subjects the driver to the general penalties of chapter 4. S. 39:4-203: not more than $50 or imprisonment for up to 15 days, or both, where no specific penalty is provided. S. S. 39:3-79 at not more than $25 for each violation, covering the brakes, odometer, speedometer, die-stamped VIN and the "25 MPH Vehicle" decal. S. 3 makes the operator subject to chapter 4 of Title 39 generally, and to chapters 11 and 12 of Title 2C, an LSV driver faces the same drunk driving, reckless driving and vehicular offence exposure as the driver of a car.

Driving a gas golf cart on a New Jersey road is a different and worse problem than a speed-limit violation: the machine cannot be registered, titled or insured as an LSV at all, so the charges available are unregistered vehicle, no insurance and driving an unregistered uninsured vehicle, not a low-speed vehicle route violation.