04/24/2026
ORV Laws
Good morning,
As summer is quickly approaching, we would like to remind everyone of the Roscommon County ORV Ordinance, which became effective May 13, 2009. The ordinance was adopted to regulate the operation of Off-Road Vehicles (ORVs) on the roadways in Roscommon County. Law Enforcement officers will be enforcing this ordinance.
Many laws pertain to the operation of an ORV on the roadway and here are just a few that you will find in the Roscommon County ORV Ordinance #4:
Sec. 2 An ORV may be operated on the far right of the maintained portion of a road or street within the county.
Sec. 6 An ORV may not be operated on the road surface, roadway, shoulder, or right-of-way of any state or federal highway in the county - i.e., M-18, M-55, US 127, and I-75.
Sec. 7 Except as set forth herein or otherwise provided by law, an ORV meeting all of the following conditions may be operated on a road or street in the county.
a) at a speed of no more than 25 miles per hour or a lower posted ORV speed limit.
b) by a person not less than 12 years of age.
i) while the operator and each passenger is wearing a crash helmet and protective eye-wear approved by the United States Department of Transportation unless the vehicle is equipped with a roof that meets or exceeds standards for a crash helmet and the operator and each passenger is wearing a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt.
Sec. 8 A child less than 16 years of age shall not operate an ORV on a road or street in the county unless the child is under the direct visual supervision of an adult and the child has in his or her immediate possession a Michigan issued ORV safety certificate or a comparable ORV safety certificate issued under the authority of another state or a province of Canada.
Again, these are just a few of the laws that ORVs need to follow while operating on the roadways in Roscommon County. For a complete list of the ORV laws contained in the Roscommon County Ordinance, please visithttps://gerrishpolice.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ORV_AMENDED_ORDINANCE_5-13-091.pdf
If you would like to view the Roscommon County ORV trail map, which contains a partial list of the ORV ordinance, please visithttps://www.gerrishpolice.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ORV-OrdinanceMap-Brochure-2020.pdf
If you have any further questions, please call the Gerrish Township Police Department at 989-821-5207.
