Argos Town officials continue to discuss the
When members met for their second meeting of the month, Town Attorney Derek Jones reminded the council that they’re still in the preliminary stages of creating the policy and that no official readings have been held yet. He drew up a document for the council to consider based off a draft ordinance that was created by Councilman Dustin Johnson.
Town Police Chief Corey Bowman weighed in on the matter, noting that when he was conducting some of his own research on utility vehicles, he found that they’re not made for on-road use. He added that was something he found from the vehicle manufacturers themselves.
Bowman verbally expressed that he wasn’t in favor of the idea of allowing UTVs in town due to the potential problems that may arise.
Councilman Charles Randy Snead noted that golf carts are also not intended for driving on the street, but they allow those. He indicated he felt the same opportunity should be available to UTV owners.
After reviewing the ordinance and holding various conversations over specifics, members asked Jones to add a few more things to the ordinance.
Some of those suggestions included adding a maximum speed limit of 20 miles per hour, including a yearly registration of $50 and a requirement for an inspection to be conducted by the Police Department at the time of registration.
The fine was increased from where it is currently due to the additional responsibilities that adding more vehicles would put on the Police Department, in regards to inspections and enforcement.
Jones was also asked to include something about how exhausts could not be altered from what was orginally installed by the manufacturer and that the vehicles must include all necessary safety features, including turn signals.
There was a general consensus from the members that language should be added in that recognizes that existing registration is still valid and that residents will not need to renew their vehicle until that registration expires.
No official actions were taken but Jones said he would make the changes and bring the document back to the council for further consideration.
