Teenager helps to reverse scooter law
By HME News Staff
Updated Wed January 31, 2007
TRENTON, N.J. - The state legislature approved a bill in mid-December that allows disabled people to ride power scooters on public roads, an activity that has been banned since July 2005. The inspiration for the bill: 14-year-old Matthew Tempe, who has muscular dystrophy. In September 2005, a police officer stopped Tempe while he was riding his scooter near his home. The officer didn't give Tempe a ticket, but he notified him that riding the scooter was illegal. Soon after, Tempe's parents contacted their state legislators to sponsor a bill to reverse the law. Per the bill, disabled people can ride scooters on roads with 25 mph to 35 mph speed limits, but they must have a sticker or placard issued by the state Motor Vehicle Commission. The bill now goes to the governor for consideration.
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