RANCHO MURIETA CA (MPG) - A 69-year-old Rancho Murieta man was seriously injured Feb. 27 when the golf cart he was driving was struck by a Ford Aerostar van on Jackson Highway at Murieta Drive, according to the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District and the California Highway Patrol. The collision occurred at approximately 7:13 p.m.

Capt. Mark Nunez, the Sac Metro Fire spokesperson, said the incident was initially reported as a walk-up medical aid at Station 59. The individual reported a vehicle accident at the intersection of Jackson Highway and Murieta Parkway.

Fire crews responded to the intersection and located one patient, Nunez said. He did not have the patient’s gender information. The patient was transported to the hospital, Code 3 by Medic 59, with moderate to severe injuries.

When contacted on March 2, CHP Sgt. Ben Ashby said the golf cart driver was a 69-year-old man from Sloughhouse. He said the van’s driver was a 19-year-old man from Jackson.

Ashby said the department’s incident log and face sheet for the uncompleted report did not include information about the cause of the collision or who was at fault. He added a box was checked, indicating the golf cart driver was “under the influence.”

Although the report remained unfinished as of March 6, Officer Angie Monroe, public information officer for the CHP’s Sacramento East Area office, provided additional information.

While the incomplete report indicated the driver of the Ford Aerostar van had run the red light, it did not indicate whether he was speeding or had been cited. Monroe had more information about the other driver involved in the collision.

“The driver of the golf cart was ejected and landed on the roadway, causing a laceration to the back of their head,” Monroe said in a text message, adding that the individual was transported to Kaiser South Sacramento.

“After clearing the crash scene, the investigating officer responded to the hospital to perform a DUI investigation and subsequently arrested the golf cart driver on suspicion of DUI,” she wrote. “That party was released due to the extent of injuries, which were considered major.”

The River Valley Times has been unable to obtain a condition report from Kaiser’s public affairs office since the accident.  

Multiple residents posted about the accident on social media shortly after it occurred. Some described the incident as a red-light violation involving the eastbound Ford van. The online CHP incident report initially referenced a possible hit-and-run, but subsequent entries indicated the vehicle had pulled into a nearby parking lot.

Rancho Murieta resident Jay Triplett said he was inside the Chevron station when he heard the collision.

“There was no skid mark. I couldn’t see any skid marks, so the person definitely ran a red light,” Triplett said.

Triplett said he went to check on the van’s driver after seeing others assisting the golf cart driver. The van had come to rest in front of El Dorado Savings Bank.

Triplett said he asked the young driver if he was drunk, and the driver responded that he was not. He said the driver told him he was traveling about 50 mph. 

“No way that was 50 mph,” Triplett said.

Triplett also said the driver told him he did not have a driver’s license but had planned to obtain a permit.

Another resident reported seeing a CHP officer conduct a field sobriety test on the van driver. Triplett said he did not witness that.

Rancho Murieta Community Services District Patrol Officer J. Passer also responded to the scene. Although the name of the golf cart driver was redacted in his log entry, the report indicated the individual lives on Guadalupe Drive. Passer wrote that he provided a statement to CHP and assisted with traffic control until he was released from the scene, according to the Security Department log.

The recent collision is not the first serious crash at the Jackson Highway and Murieta Drive intersection. On July 29,  2024, a stolen Hyundai Elantra being pursued by the California Highway Patrol ran a red light and broadsided a Rivian SUV that was crossing the highway on a green signal before striking a pole and bursting into flames.

Two occupants of the fleeing car later died from major injuries. The three occupants of the Rivian were hospitalized with moderate injuries. Three teenagers riding two golf carts had been about to cross the highway but avoided the collision when a girl in the lead cart spotted the speeding vehicle and warned the driver, who braked before entering the intersection.

Residents once again expressed frustration about vehicle speeds along this stretch of highway, which has a posted speed limit of 55 mph but runs directly alongside a residential community. Residents frequently report that many vehicles exceed the speed limit.

The Murieta Drive intersection is of particular concern because residents frequently cross the highway by golf cart to access the commercial area across from the gated community. Security logs indicate that accidents at the intersection are fairly common.

In early 2018, the Rancho Murieta Association and the Rancho Murieta Community Services District jointly requested that Caltrans reduce the speed limit from 55 mph to 45 mph between Murieta Parkway South and Murieta Drive.

Then-District 3 Director Amarjeet S. Benipal denied the request in an April 2018 letter to the RMA Board. He noted that Caltrans had conducted a traffic safety investigation on Highway 16 between Dillard and Ione roads in February of that year.

Benipal wrote that collisions were concentrated between Murieta Parkway and Murieta Parkway South, where the roadway was striped for no passing. He cited several rear-end collisions westbound approaching Murieta Parkway, as well as collisions involving deer or drivers attempting to avoid them.

However, Caltrans determined that the speed limit could not be reduced because state law requires speed limits to reflect the 85th percentile speed of motorists traveling the roadway under free-flow conditions. Lowering the speed limit below that threshold, he wrote, could produce “counterintuitive results.”

Benipal said that Caltrans was planning two improvements: trimming trees and clearing brush to improve sight distance for westbound drivers approaching the Murieta Parkway signal

and relocating the flashing “signal ahead” sign to improve visibility for eastbound drivers approaching Murieta Parkway.

The River Valley Times contacted the Caltrans District 3 public affairs office on March 2 to confirm those improvements and to request information on at least two additional safety changes implemented since 2018. One was the removal of the double centerline striping between Murieta Drive and Kiefer Boulevard. The second was the installation of orange lane delineators on Jackson Highway east of Murieta Drive in 2025. As of March 6, Caltrans had not responded.