Other Power Driven Mobility Devices Procedure

I. Introduction

The Charleston County Park & Recreation Commission (CCPRC) has established the following procedure regarding the use of other power driven mobility devices (OPDMD) by persons with disabilities who are visiting CCPRC parks and/or participating in CCPRC programs, as well as for CCPRC employees. This procedure intends to ensure compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act (Section 504), and to ensure that CCPRC does not discriminate on the basis of disability as identified in Titles I and II of the ADA.

II. Primary CCPRC Contacts

  1. Participants and authorized users may use an OPDMD in CCPRC parks, facilities and programs where they are authorized users as a reasonable modification. Persons with disabilities are invited to contact the ADA Coordinator if you have questions about this procedure.
  2. Employees may use OPDMD as a workplace accommodation. Please contact the Human Resources Division for information regarding this process.

When an OPDMD is being used by a person with a mobility disability, different rules apply under the ADA than when it is being used by a person without a disability.

III. Definitions 

  1. Wheelchair: A manually-operated or power-driven device designed primarily for use by an individual with a mobility disability for the main purpose of indoor or outdoor locomotion.
  2. Other power-driven mobility device (OPDMD): Any mobility device powered by batteries, fuel, or other engines––whether or not designed primarily for use by individuals with mobility disabilities––that is used by individuals with mobility disabilities for the purpose of locomotion, including golf cars, electronic personal assistance mobility devices (EPAMDs), such as the Segway® PT, or any mobility device designed to operate in areas without defined pedestrian routes, but that is not a wheelchair within the meaning of this document.
  3. Electronic personal assistive mobility device (EPAMD): A device used by a person with a mobility impairment for ambulation. This definition does not include gasoline powered devices, golf cars, or riding lawn mowers.


IV. Permission & Restrictions 

CCPRC authorizes persons with mobility impairments to use OPDMDs and EPAMDs in CCPRC parks and facilities subject to the following restrictions:

  1. The operator of the device must be a person with a mobility impairment, and upon request by CCPRC officials, shall produce proof of such within 72 hours;
  2. The device, if used in a facility or park, is allowed in any area in which the general public is allowed, with the exception of employee only spaces, stairways, and identified hazardous areas;
  3. The device, if used indoors, must be controlled by the operator and:
    1. may not exceed speed of 4 mph;
    2. shall be driven on the right side of the circulation route;
    3. is prohibited from carrying another person, or any object, on the frame that may make the device less stable; and
    4. must not be operated in a dangerous or reckless manner that jeopardizes the safety of the operator, CCPRC employees, or the public.
  4. The device, if used outdoors in a park or facility, must be controlled by the operator and:
    1. may not be operated between dusk and dawn unless equipped with headlights that are visible at 300’; 
    2. may not exceed speed of 6 mph;
    3. shall not be driven into wet or ecologically sensitive areas, posted as such;
    4. shall be driven on the right side of the circulation route;
    5. is prohibited from carrying another person or any object on the frame that may make the device less stable; and
    6. must not be operated in a dangerous or reckless manner that jeopardizes the safety of the operator, CCPRC employees, or the public.
  5. CCPRC accepts no responsibility for storage or maintenance (refueling, recharging, etc.) of the device.
  6. CCPRC accepts no liability for damage to, or theft of the device, or injury to the operator, whether caused by the operator, another facility or site visitor, or any other circumstance.
  7. CCPRC accepts no liability for damage caused by the operator of the device, or injury to others caused by the operator of the device.
  8. CCPRC reserves the right to suspend the use of facilities or sites by the operator of an OPMDP if doing so is in the best interests of the facility or site and its visitors.
  9. CCPRC reserves the right to change, modify, or amend this procedure at any time, as it would any other procedure.