Three hours after renting a moped in Oak Bluffs Saturday morning, 30-year-old Katherine D. Miller tried to round a right curve on Beach Road near Harthaven, lost control of the moped and struck an oncoming car.

A forum at the Oak Bluffs School last night began with the findings of a recent study on two-wheeled vehicles and ended in a lengthy dialogue about the history, safety and future of mopeds on the Island.

Dr. Alan Hirshberg's year-long study of accidents involving mopeds, bicycles and motorcycles found that most moped accident victims are daytrippers to the Island who have received under seven minutes of training.

Moped accident victims need more training - most have never driven a motorized two-wheeler before, and the average customer gets seven minutes of training at the rental shop. Moped crash victims tend to be short-term visitors to the Island, and they crash most frequently in August. More bicyclists are hurt each summer than moped drivers, but victims of moped accidents tend to be hurt far more seriously.

Selectmen Support Tough Moped Laws

All-Island Selectmen Association Hears Emotional Appeal
To Pressure Boston to End Carnage on Island Roads

By JOSHUA SABATINI

After listening to a presentation by Sam Feldman of the Mopeds Are Dangerous Committee, the All-Island Selectmen Association unanimously decided to support legislation that would require a motorcycle license to rent a moped.

Casting aside deep differences, moped dealers and their politically active opponents formally agreed yesterday to implement a nine-point plan aimed at one goal - reducing injuries to moped riders.

Oak Bluffs selectman Todd Rebello this week all but admitted that town officials have done a lousy job making moped dealers abide by town regulations, and selectmen agreed Tuesday night to improve local enforcement.

Just five days after a moped accident in Oak Bluffs killed a Virginia woman, another accident yesterday in Edgartown has left a 60-year-old moped rider from Florida in critical condition with severe head injuries.

Two middle school teachers from Florida, Judy and Barnard Lorence, should be back in their classrooms getting ready for a new school year, but there's no chance of that now.

Oak Bluffs had fewer mopeds and fewer dealers renting them this year. Now the hospital is reporting fewer people ending up in the emergency room after crashing a moped.

Voters in Oak Bluffs could put a significant dent in the number of mopeds rented in their town if they back a tough proposal put forth by selectmen. At a special town meeting on June 18, residents will be asked to approve a bylaw that would cut down the number of moped dealer licenses issued each year from seven to five.