The Manitoba Driver, from Manitoba Public Insurance
March 2008

About 250 words
It’s never too soon to start thinking about farm safety

Fields may still be blanketed in snow, but it won’t be long until one of the first signs of spring appears again on the landscape – farmers seeding.

That also means farm equipment will again return to Manitoba’s roads and highways. According to safety experts with Manitoba Public Insurance, the best advice is to welcome farmers back to the road and be prepared to slow down.

“It’s surprising how quickly you can come up on a piece of slow-moving farm equipment,” says Lou Gervino, Manager of Driver Education for Manitoba Public Insurance. “By law they don’t exceed 40 kilometres per hour and some are much slower than that.”

There are typically between 25 and 30 vehicles a year in collisions involving farm equipment on roadways. A willingness on everyone’s part to share the road and keep in mind a few safety tips will help cut down on accidents.

Farm machinery can be oddly shaped and take up more space than regular vehicles, so as you approach it’s important to take the necessary time to assess how long and wide it is.

Gervino says drivers should exercise extra caution rounding corners and coming up over hills, especially at night. Wait for a good view of the road ahead before attempting to pass.

Those who drive heavy equipment on highways are required to have a slow-moving vehicle emblem clearly visible to traffic approaching from behind, with red reflectors as close as possible to the left and right at the rear.

At night, farm equipment must have headlights, red tail lamps and flashing amber warning lamps.

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© 2008 Manitoba Public Insurance

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