I love this idea. I have wondered for some time why a 49cc scooter with the appropriate signals is street legal but an ATV with the same lights/horns/etc. would not be. I am excited about this new legislation. I feel it will encourage people to employ a variety of transportation methods. I would rather enjoy a quick trip on my ATV to get some groceries rather than my 2 ton 4×4.

I do understand that many of these machines also consume hydrocarbons but my experience has shown me that several gallons in an ATV will go far longer than that same fuel quantity in my SUV.

Many of the Japanese ATVs have emission that are quite low and most are four stroke engines.

I know some will say that safety will be an issue but I would argue that riding an ATV has safety advantages over manual propulsion traffic.

Maybe this is another way the State can gain some registration revenue after Butch makes me pay to register my canoe.

This is a good example of how structure serves as a dis-incentive. Many states if not most levy a tax on vehicles registered as a percentage of the purchase price or value. All states and the feds receieve money based on the number of gallons of gasoline sold. To pass laws that allow the purchase and use of inexpensive fuel effecient vehicles on public roads cuts government revenue, so many are reluctanct to do so. I wouldn’t ride my 4-wheeler on the freeway, but I would like to use to run across the street for some milk and other local chores that I use my car for.

Most ATVs only get 25 to 30 mpg and the tires wear out very fast on asphalt. Not much of a savings there since my ’96 Pontiac four door, six seater with a trunk big enough for a couple of bodies gets 25 to 33 mpg with emission controls that those polluters don’t have. ATVs are geared for off road use, have a higher road clearance that makes them less stable and I really don’t want those noisy toys ripping up and down my street. I can’t hear the normal traffic from inside my house but when one of my neighbors takes his ATV up and down the street it is really annoying.

I don’t know where ericn gets the mpg info, but I know my second-hand ATV will run for hours on a gallon, even while dragging a tooth-and-scraper device to smooth out our gravel driveways.
As for the tires; yep, the soft tires designed for off-road-only use don’t hold up well on pavement. Duh! Obviously, anyone planning to use an ATV on streets would get tires designed for that purpose (or multi-purpose, as most of us have on our pickups, so they hold up well on pavement and still give a good grip on gravel, dirt, snow, sand and whatever).
As for the noise: a good four-stroke engine with a proper muffler should be no louder than many cars and motorcycles, and not so loud as many Harleys.
Properly written laws and a little common sense can easily defuse the problems cited.
(The only engines I hear going by my house, about a quarter-mille from the road, are gravel trucks, Harleys and Hummers. I hear the ATVs and dirt bikes on the other side of the canal *only* when some idiot revs ’em up to go 35 mph in first or second gear, instead of shifting.)

The “Peak Oil” situation that appears to be occuring now will go much smoother if government changes regulations quickly to match our new reality.

We need to quickly dump restrictions that impede efficiencies from being realized.

Transport options need to be widened.

Restrictions on growing food and keeping animals in the city need to be revisited often.

Building regulations need to be changed to allow for tiny houses, built inexpensively. New houses need to be zero-energy.

Land owners should not be able to keep their land in an unproductive state. Vacant lots need to be given over to micro-farming by those who cannot afford the escalating food prices.

The days of posing for the Jones’s and all trying to (appear) live the American dream are coming to a close. We now need to figure out how to house and feed everyone, as well as keep people employed doing things that will increase our chances of a stable and safe future.

The times they are a changin’.

lets get all the atvs on the road, since gas seems to be presently out of our control. i’m tired of sitting back. we all know what it takes to survive. my atvs are simply more safe than those little 48cc skooters being bought by people who haven’t a clue on how to properly drive one. it’s plain stupid we sit back and spend our hard earned dollars on gas for out trucks and suv’s. i have motorcycles but can’t carry much on them. we let idots make all the decisions because were all so busy chasing the dollar ,supporting out families.it’s not getting better,and nobody is saying what we all know deep down is the problem. weve turned ourselves into a pathethic nation who lets the media run our lives. i for one will be using my atv for trips to the store,and if i owned a golf cart i’d use that too…