KNOXVILLE, TN – According to their Facebook page, Joyride is a ride-sharing service that utilizes street-legal golf carts, also known as LSVs, to take people around town for $3 a person. The service began in Knoxville, Tennessee in 2015. Three years into business, and now the city is beginning to question if/how they should regulate it.
“We’re all positioned such that if we do need to get an ordinance on the books we could probably do so pretty quickly,” said Crista Cuccaro with the City of Knoxville’s legal team. “At this point, I don’t think that’s where we’re headed, but it could change.”
According to WBIR.com, Erin Sweeney, a driver for Joyride, says the company works under a clear and defined set of rules in the city. The cart must follow all states laws regulating low-speed vehicles on roads. That requires special places from the county clerk’s office as well as other features like brake lights and seat belts.
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Sweeny stated, “We operate downtown, the old city, the fort and campus. I think we have a good relationship with the police department and the city.”
Nashville placed specific ordinances on the carts after problems involving a lawsuit over a crash and carts driving on roads that the city didn’t allow. Knoxville’s legal team plans to watch what happens in Nashville and make a decision down the road.
“We have to make sure that its operating safely and right now that’s our priority,” said Cuccaro. “The additional things that could be drafted into the ordinance would be something like a permitting system, inspections though our division is the police department that handles taxi inspections..but because there are already laws in place, that gives us a sense of comfort,” she said.
