OCEAN CITY — Having dispensed with the electric bicycles on the Boardwalk issue, resort officials this week approved a new policy outlining the rules for Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices by disabled individuals on the beach, Boardwalk and in the parks.
For the last month or so, the Mayor and Council have been debating the allowable use of certain e-bikes on the Boardwalk. The issue first arose at the police commission level and focused on the potential repercussions of running afoul of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance.
Some with disabilities or who are recovering from an illness or injury utilize e-bikes to enjoy the Boardwalk bike-riding experience or to rehabilitate. After weeks of often-contentious debate, the council voted to allow only the lowest rated, lowest speed Class 1 e-bikes on the Boardwalk and only at times when other bikes were allowed.
Out of the e-bike debate arose concern the town did not have a policy in place regarding Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices (OPDMD) operated or ridden on the beach, Boardwalk or in the parks and the same potential issues with ADA violations. Like the e-bike issue, the OPDMD issue arose at the police commission level, and it was determined the town needed to create a policy to govern the matter.
There are federal guidelines for the use of OPDMD in parks and other public areas, for example, but Ocean City did not have rules in place for its most frequented public areas like the beach and Boardwalk. City Manager Terry McGean was directed to draft a policy regarding the use of OPDMD and he presented the plan to the Mayor and Council on Tuesday. He said absent a stated town policy, it could be anything goes on the beach and Boardwalk with the OPDMD.
“There are federal rules in place,” he said. “The town needs a policy in place for the beach, Boardwalk and the parks. If we don’t have a policy, it is allowed by default.”
McGean said non-powered wheelchairs and electric mobility scooters are currently allowed in those areas, but rules were not defined in an official policy for OPDMD. He said the council could address the issue by ordinance, or the draft policy could be simply approved by a majority of the council.
“Wheelchairs, power wheelchairs and electric mobility scooters are permitted on the beach at all times and locations,” he said. “Ocean City recognizes that standard-type wheelchairs and mobility scooters will not typically operate in beach sand.”
For the beach, the proposed policy states that all Other Power-Driving Mobility Devices (OPDMD) should only be operated by a person with disabilities or should have a person with disabilities as the sole passenger and are prohibited from carrying anyone other than the person with a disability or the operator.
In addition, the operator or passenger must present on demand a valid state-issued parking placard or other state-issued proof of disability or provide a verbal representation of the disability which is not contradicted by observable facts. The OPDMD can only be operated on the beach in the daylight hours.
Given the terrain on the beach and high pedestrian traffic on the beach, OPDMD should not exceed five miles per hour when operated on the beach, or a speed McGean characterized as standard walking speed. OPDMP devices must access the beach via an existing dune crossing and may not travel more than one block in a north or south direction from the crossover entry.
The policy outlines specifications for allowable OPDMD on the beach. For example, they must have a maximum width of 38 inches and a maximum length of 72 inches. The devices can have a maximum operating speed of 15 miles per hour but will only be allowed to travel five miles per hour when on the beach. ATVs and other high-speed vehicles are prohibited on the beach due to the high volume of pedestrian traffic and density of people.
The proposed OPDMD rules spelled out in the policy for the Boardwalk and the parks are largely similar to the proposed beach regulations. A key element to the rules for the Boardwalk is the mobility devices will only be allowed during the regular stated hours when bicycles are allowed and prohibited when bicycles are prohibited.
The rules for the parks are also very similar to the beach in terms of the operator and passenger issues. For example, the town’s Northside Park complex and the downtown recreation complex have a series of 10-foot-wide paved trails that are popular with pedestrians and bicyclists.
For the parks, the OPDMD can have a maximum design speed of 15 miles per hour but can only be operated at 10 miles per hour. Like the beach, the OPDMD can only be operated in the parks during daylight hours. The specifications for OPDMD allowed in the parks are lightly larger than those allowed on the beach in terms of width, but the length requirements are the same.
The council voted 6-0, with Councilman Mark Paddack absent, to approve the OPDMD policy as presented. There was some consideration in the policy as drafted for having the OPDMD operators officially register their devices, but that proposal got little traction, so to speak.
