Highlighting some of the many applications for small, task-oriented vehicles

Beach Bugz co-owners Adam Benigni, left, and Jimmy Stephenson have opened a LSV rental business, along with partner Adam Smith, not pictured. Photo Credit: David Albers

Beach Bugz Offers LSVs for Rent – Beach Bugz, a company based in Naples, FL, started renting LSVs last October for daily, weekend or weekly use at rates of $100, $275 or $475 respectively. Beach Bugz currently has a fleet of 23, six-seat E-Z-GO vehicles that meet LSV regulations and conveniently come with a free beach parking sticker. The company was started by Adam Benigni, Adam Smith and Jimmy Stephenson and they have plans to expand their fleet to between 50 and 100 vehicles to cover from Naples to Marco Island as well as looking to other counties and to hotel rentals. They hope to upgrade the vehicles as well with GPS navigation and bluetooth enabled speakers so customers can stream music over their smartphones. Some businesses in the area offer dedicated parking spots for electric vehicles or LSVs and the City Council is examining ways to encourage LSV use. The rentals have been popular when customers had friends and relatives visiting for Thanksgiving or children coming down for Spring Break. Learn more:  Naplenews.com

Comment:  A nice niche fleet market is developing for LSVs. In addition to this type of rental company, there have been a number of LSV taxi fleets that have been started in different cities around the country. While they often face some local regulatory issues, in general, they appear to be making some headway.