Carson Councilmember and SBCCOG Immediate Past Chair Cedric Hicks at the Tour de Carson bike tour and festival.

Turtle Talk Turns 1!

We are celebrating one year of "Turtle Talk," the e-blast with the latest updates and news-you-can-use about the South Bay Local Travel Network (LTN), produced by the South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG).

When we first started out, we sought to create a way to regularly engage with champions of the LTN and residents of the South Bay community. Since then, Turtle Talk has become a platform for news, safety tips, innovation, legislation, and more. This year “Turtle Talk” transitions into a quarterly publication. We thank you for your readership and hope that you continue to ‘right-size your ride’ with zero-emission, low-speed vehicles.

Here's a little reminder: the LTN is planned to be a 243-mile network of existing, low-speed routes designed to accommodate travel via small, low-speed vehicles (aka street-worthy golf carts, e-bikes, pedal bikes, e-scooters, etc.).

To reread this content in the future, visit our website. Be sure to follow our social media campaigns on Instagram, Facebook, X and LinkedIn.  

SBCCOG Receives New LTN Grant Funding

The SBCCOG was recently awarded two new grants that will build a better connected LTN and help community members to use low-speed vehicles safely. Read about the exciting work that we’re doing below: 

Carson to the Sea - Caltrans Sustainable Communities Grant

Current road design presents safety and legal challenges for low-speed vehicles to travel within and between the cities of Carson, Lomita, and San Pedro. This study will address these gaps and design on-road solutions to allow low-speed vehicles to travel safely on busier, high-speed streets. The SBCCOG will also host outreach events that will provide community members with opportunities to test ride low-speed vehicles. 

E-Bike Safety - Safe Streets For All Grant - federal funds currently on hold

The SBCCOG is developing a Micromobility Safety Action Plan to help advance the South Bay towards zero road fatalities and serious injuries. As a part of this plan, the SBCCOG will host interactive events with cities, law enforcement, and local vendors to provide hands-on micromobility safety education to the community. In addition, the SBCCOG will develop an e-bike sticker program toolkit for local schools to educate students on e-bike safety. This toolkit will be used to enhance existing school e-bike safety initiatives and to fast-track sticker programs at new schools.  

Tips From the Turtle

Neighborhood EVs are a fun way to right-size your ride when following these safety tips: 

🛺 Only carry the number of passengers intended for the vehicle. 

🔑 NEVER leave your keys unattended in the vehicle. 

🎢 Just like an amusement park ride, keep all arms and legs inside and never allow passengers to stand up while the vehicle is moving. 

🅿️ ALWAYS engage the parking brake when parking. 

❌ Never operate the car from the passenger side. 

🚸 Handle the vehicle like a full-sized car – slow down at sharp turns, check blind spots, and yield to pedestrians. 

Source: Golf Cart Garage 

The Rolling Turtle Receives a Trademark

It’s official. The SBCCOG recently received notice from the United States Patent and Trademark Office that the LTN “rolling turtle” logo is trademarked and can now display the (®).

The SBCCOG's Energy Efficiency team poses with a rolling turtle sign while completing a site visit in El Segundo.

E-Scooter is Powered by the Sun

The Lightfoot seated scooter is quite literally a solar panel on wheels. Produced by Otherlab, Lightfoot is designed to be a practical vehicle for everyday short trips that can store and lock enough cargo to fit a carry-on suitcase and carry up to two passengers.

According to Otherlab’s press releases, “Lightfoot is powered by a 48-volt, 1.1 kilowatt-hour battery that can travel up to 37 miles (60 km) on a full charge and can be charged to 80% in just 90 minutes using the scooter’s 600W onboard charger and a standard 110-volt wall plug. The vehicle harnesses the power of the sun to provide up to 18 miles (28 km) of additional range per day, via dual 120W solar panels that recharge the battery simply by sitting parked outside.”

The Lightfoot is available for purchase now for $4,995. 

New micromobility innovations and technologies are constantly emerging from around the world. We want to showcase some of these exciting vehicle inventions in the industry. Perhaps you’ll spot one of these devices cruising around the South Bay in the near future.

E-Bike Modification Law Goes Into Effect

Assembly Bill 1774, authored by 72nd District State Assemblymember Diane Dixon, prohibits the sale of products that can modify e-bike speeds such that they no longer meet the definition of an e-bike (aka tuning kits). This law seeks to prevent riders from modifying their e-bikes to operate faster than the legal speed of 28 mph.    

Ever wonder how our legislators plan to address issues surrounding low-speed vehicles, mobility and traffic safety? In this Legislative Tracker feature, we will spotlight a local, state, or federal piece of legislation pertaining to low-speed travel in a quick, easy-to-understand explanation. 

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