Can I drive an ATV legally on SC streets? Here’s what to know
Be it South Carolina, Alabama or Florida, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone from the South who hasn’t had an interaction with an all-terrain vehicle at one point or another.
Whether you’ve driven or ridden on a four-wheeler as a kid, are an owner or have been around family and friends who have one, ATVs are just fairly common vehicles below the Mason-Dixon Line.
However, that does not mean people can just drive ATVs anywhere in South Carolina. All ATVs are designed primarily for off-road travel, after all.
But could you drive your ATV down the road to the local grocery store in the Palmetto State if you wanted?
Not according to the law.
“It would be illegal unless it was permitted in a parade or special event,” said Cpl. David Jones, community relations and recruiting, SC Department of Public Safety.
According to the department of public safety, ATVs are designed primarily for off-road travel and are no more than 50 inches wide. They can have three or more low-pressure tires and handle bars for steering.
They do not include lawn tractors, battery-powered children’s toys or a vehicle that is required to be licensed or titled for highway use.
Incidentally, people with golf carts can drive those legally on South Carolina roads under certain circumstances.
What else is against the law when it comes to driving ATVs?
You cannot drive an ATV:
- More than 30 minutes after sunset or more than 30 minutes before sunrise unless headlights are on
- Under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- In a reckless manner
You cannot allow:
- Anyone under 6 years old to drive an ATV
- Anyone 16 or younger to drive an ATV unless with an adult
- Anyone less than 16 to drive an ATV with a passenger who is not an adult
- Anyone less than 16 to drive an ATV in violation of the warning label on the vehicle
- Anyone 15 or younger to: drive an ATV without successfully completing a “hands-on” ATV safety course approved by the All-Terrain Vehicle Safety Institute (AVSI); drive or ride an ATV in South Carolina without a helmet and eye protection
