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2 wrecks reported on same stretch of cart path in 1 week

Cyclist hurt in crash last week

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

A Peachtree City man was seriously injured when a golf cart struck him while he was biking on a cart path near McIntosh High School between Walt Banks Road and Stevens Entry last week, police said.

And in the same area Wednesday, a golf cart driver was injured after she flipped her cart over, according to police.

In last week’s crash, Carl Jones Ulbrich, 54, was riding a mountain bike when he was hit by a golf cart driven by Carmen A. R. Heinze, 33, police said. Ulbrich’s injuries were treated by the Peachtree City Fire and Rescue Department before he was flown by medical helicopter to Atlanta Medical Center.

Ulbrich was wearing a bike helmet at the time of the collision, police said.

An investigation by the department’s community response team revealed the golf cart had defective brakes, police said.

Heinze, who lives at 52 Cobblestone Creek, was cited for reckless driving, driving with defective equipment and violating a city ordinance regarding “hazardous activities” on the city’s cart path system.

The city ordinance requires that when approaching oncoming path users such as another golf cart, bicyclist, skater or pedestrian, both parties should move to the right side of the cart path.

In Wednesday’s accident, Erica Renee Semon, 15 was driving a golf cart on the same stretch of cart path when she drove too fast down the steep hill, causing her to lose control of the cart, police said. Semon’s cart overturned after she ran off the cart path and then overcorrected, police said.

Semon, of 217 Groveland Drive, was cited for reckless driving. She suffered a severe injury to her right ankle, police said.

Until an ordinance change last year, the city had traditionally disallowed 15-year-olds driving golf carts without supervision. But that change allowed them to drive on their own as long as they possess a valid Georgia learner’s permit.