In Discovery Bay Hong Kong they do! Discovery Bay is a car-free residential area on Lantau island in Hong Kong. Residents use busses and golf carts to get around. However there are only 490 licenses for Golf Carts in Discovery Bay for around 20,000 residents. A strong demand and lively trade in renting and selling these Golf Carts has driven up prices from 3,700 euro in the 1980’s to 250,000+ euro now. In the last few years the prices have exploded!
Golf Carts can only be bought by residents of Discovery Bay and the price is more or less the same for modern electric Yamaha cars and 1980’s Columbia Par cars, its the license that counts. The government kept the number of licenses limited to prevent the Discovery Bay road system from clogging up with Golf Cars. Despite the risk of change in government policy and release of additional licenses many Discovery Bay inhabitants keep spending a small fortune on their Golf Carts.
After the first phase of Discovery Bay was delivered in 1982 until 2000 the only way to reach Discovery Bay was per ferry. In 2000 a road tunnel opened that connects Discovery Bay with the rest of Lantau Island and provides quick access to Hong Kong International Airport. The roads however remain car free and the Golf Cart trade continues to boom.
