We can't imagine why, but apparently the sponsors of HB1103 think mixing golf carts and other motor vehicles is a good idea.

A bill that would allow municipal governments to let people drive golf carts on city roads, including any state and county highways under their municipal jurisdiction, was introduced in the 2010 Legislature by four lawmakers, including our own Sen. Craig Tieszen, R-Rapid City.

This is one of those bills that gives state legislatures a bad name. At best, it seems silly. At worst, it seems dangerous. At any rate, it seems unnecessary.

The legislation, which has passed the House of Representatives and awaits action in the Senate, does require that any town or city that changes its traffic regulations to allow golf carts on its roads must make sure those carts are insured and the person driving one has a license. It even suggests that those carts might display a slow-moving vehicle emblem or flashing warning lights.

Not good enough.

There's a simple reason why we call them golf carts: They are meant to be driven on golf courses, and that's exactly where they should stay. No matter how badly people want the convenience of buzzing home from the driving range for lunch in their golf cart instead of their car, state lawmakers shouldn't give it to them.

Unsuspecting motorists who pass through the many small towns that dot the state highway system in South Dakota deserve better than that. Drivers expect to be on the lookout for pedestrians, for animals and for slow-moving cars as they enter the city limits. But golf carts? Hardly.

The risk of seriously injuring or even killing the occupant of a golf cart, should a driver fail to see one zipping across a state highway, is simply too great. We're betting insurance companies will think so, too. And the chance that those carts will be driven by elderly drivers whose reflexes may not be as sharp as they once were, or by teen drivers whose judgment may not be fully developed, also scares us.

Any legislator who feels compelled to vote for a such a law should do so only after offering an amendment that makes a golf cart driver assume all liability for any motor vehicle accident they may be involved in.

Until then, we think golf carts should stay on golf courses where they belong.