(Beaver Dam) The city of Beaver Dam has an ordinance permitting the use of ATVs and UTVs on the streets that went into effect towards the end of last year. Because of the weather getting warmer, owners of those vehicles have been able to operate them more often. Beaver Dam Police Lieutenant Jeremiah Johnson provided an update and said that noise can be a problem.
“It’s been people driving crazy with these things, OK.” Johnson says. “So, they’re hot-rodding and that’s a problem. [We] have a specific ordinance we adopted for ATVs and UTVs called ‘Disorderly Conduct with a Motor Vehicle’. That’s people who squeal the tires on purpose, fishtail, honking the horn, driving recklessly. Those are all things that you cannot do on an ATV or UTV.”
Johnson says the reason why the law is in place is because the ATV or UTV does not have the same safety features as a motor vehicle. The lieutenant would like to remind people to follow the rules of the road.
“Maintain a safe and reasonable control of your vehicle, especially ATVs and UTVs,” says Johnson. “So, that’s what we’re seeing.”
Johnson says this was expected to happen, and there will be a bigger presence of law enforcement, and more tickets and citations will be issued.
